The Paladin
by Michellin Quavers
Summary: There's a new girl in town, and Tasuki doesn't like it. She's not very happy with him either. What on Earth will happen?
1. Akire

Disclaimer: I do not own Tasuki, or any other character associated with Fushigi Yuugi. You dig? I do, however, own Akire, Ikegai, Amria or any other character or whatever that you can't recognize.  
  
A/N: Please forgive me for any inaccuracy in the characters' personalities or whatever, it's been so long since I wrote a Tasuki fic.  
  
Akire is a 297-year-old monarch of Amria who is also the Paladin, a dimension protector. There, simply enough for you, or do I have to break it down a bit? Amria is where the Amrians live, duh. And Amrians are very similar to us humans, except they tend to hang around longer, age-wise. Akire is just a teenager to the rest of Amria, you know. And right now, Akire is very peeved. This morning, she just captured one of the pests of her life, and right after, he escapes. Very annoying, isn't it?  
  
Well, Ikegai is an Amrian so infatuated with her that he turned into a villain to make her notice him, or probably force her to propose. Well she doesn't want to be involved in a relationship, though who'd fall in love with an egomaniac anyway?  
  
"What kind of Paladin am I?" she murmured, burying her head in her hands. Aside from her personnel, she also lives with her older sister, Janes, and her cousins, who I'd, rather introduce slowly as there're quite a lot of them. Anyway, Janes looked with pity at the frustrated Paladin and shook her head. Juggling a whole country and unfathomable number of dimensions can stress out a person, or an Amrian, which is why she and the other cousins are doing Akire a favor.  
  
"What's this, Janes?" Akire asked, looking at the cousins assembled before her. Daryll, the second oldest male cousin, stepped forward, "Well, you probably know my interest in dimensions, and I've been doing some tinkering with my tracers, and I traced Ikegai's energy into a specific dimension." Thank God for cousins, Akire thought. "You're brilliant! Thank you so much!" she said, hugging him tightly.  
  
Akire then packed a few clothes, her sword, and a spare cloak, with a carefully worded letter in her hand. Janes read it and said, "Neighboring kingdom, Akire faithful servant of the empress and Chief of the Guard?" "No need for them to know who I really am. It's not like I'd be staying there for long," she said, swinging her bag over her shoulder and opening a dimension portal. "Well, good luck on finding Ikegai! Bring him back here, unsafe and unsound!" Daryll yelled, as Akire crossed the portal and emerged on the other side.  
  
Hotohori read the letter sent to him. " 'From the Empress of a neighboring kingdom, I would like to extend greetings of peace. I am Akire, her loyal servant, and Chief of the Guard in her kingdom. I would like to ask permission stay at your country, for one of our fugitives has reportedly escaped into your vicinity. Signed, Akire.' Well, what do you all think?" He passed the letter around to the assembled Suzaku Seishi around him. "What harm would it do? Anyway, if she's planning any treachery, we're all here to stop her," Tamahome said, tossing back the letter. "It's been so long since another woman's going to stay here!" Nuriko said, excited. Everyone had a positive attitude towards this. Well, everyone except Tasuki. "Another woman, oh great," he groaned. "Hey, you don't like the idea just because you hate women!" Nuriko said. "Good, it's decided," Hotohori said, taking out another piece of paper. " 'To the Chief of the Guard, Akire. Permission granted." "Okay, I'm in, I got permission," Akire said. "Look out, Ikegai, 'cause I'm coming for you!" 


	2. Close Encounter of the Annoying Kind

Disclaimer: I do not own Tasuki, or any other character associated with Fushigi Yuugi. Period.  
  
A/N: Okay, flame me on the other stories, but no flaming this one, please! I know it's very flame-prone, but have mercy on this one! And I may be wrong on where each of their rooms is since I haven't watched Fushigi Yuugi for a long time.  
  
Akire's ship (well, she said it's for making the "ruse" more "realistic") just docked and out she went, and stood in front of the welcome committee assembled for her. "Nice people", she remarked as she went through soldiers in salute. At the end of them all was Hotohori, Miaka, Tamahome and the rest of them. Nuriko, well, had just let go of Tasuki. Apparently, he had to be dragged there, kicking and screaming as the saying goes.  
  
Bowing low, Akire said, "It is an honor to meet you all." Hotohori did likewise, while the others said, "Same here," "Nice to meet you too," "Pleasure's ours." Tasuki just settled for the, erm, blunt, "Whatever." Akire's eyes narrowed as their stares met. Mental note: watch out for this guy, next thing I know I have a knife sticking out of my back. He may even be one of Ikegai's spies. Her thoughts were diverted when Nuriko cheerfully announced, "Do you mind, Ms. Akire, if I showed you around? I'm sure you'll like it here!" Akire smiled back. "It's nice to know I'll be getting along with people here!"  
  
"Now, Hotohori told me you're allowed to chose any room you want to stay in," Nuriko said after she showed Akire around the palace. "An ordinary room would be enough for me," the latter replied, relieved that she won't be forced into a flamboyant room. Anyone would get fed up when you live in royalty everyday. Nuriko shrugged, and led her to her room. "Hey, if you need anything, holler. Don't you adhere to any formal whatever here, we don't care, either," Nuriko said, raising her voice slightly above normal to make sure Hotohori's in earshot. Oh, I would definitely have a good time here, Akire thought, letting down her bag with a thud. The moment Nuriko left the room, she removed her boots and jumped back onto the bed.  
  
There's a knock on her door. One, loud, rude one, which Akire knew Tasuki was most definitely behind it. She opened the door to the folded arms, scowl on face red head fangboy. "Just would like you to know I don't really like this arrangement," he said, pointing to his room, which Akire sadly noticed, was just across hers. "I'll be watching you. No funny stuff, or I'll roast you alive," he continued, patting his iron fan. She scowled, which wasn't the first time that happened ever since she first saw him. "Hey, when you get back to your room and close the door, don't let it hit your smug, little - ah forget it," she said, deciding that she wasn't going to let this lowlife get to her nerves. Both turned their backs to each other with their teeth bared. She isn't happy with this arrangement, either.  
  
That night, Tasuki decided that, to get rid of this little pest-of-a-woman, he has to make her life miserable here. So, after much thinking, he finally hit on a plan. He sneaked into her room, carrying a "love letter" he made to Hotohori, which he made to look as if Akire wrote it. "She'll be so embarrassed she won't be able to look anyone straight in the face anymore!" he snickered, quietly sneaking around her bed and onto the table. You see this's where he's certain someone's going to put Akire's breakfast, so someone's bound to notice the letter and will most definitely report to Hotohori. Yeah, I know, some people are just silly (in Tasuki's case, it's cute).  
  
When he was about to sneak back out, he felt the point of something long and sharp pricking the back of his head. "Do you think I became the Pal - the Chief of the Guard because I let people sneak past me into my very room? You make me laugh!" Akire's voice said. He slowly turned around to see her sword and its owner glaring back at him. He breathed a sigh of relief (though he'll never admit it) when she sheathed it and showed him the door. "This ain't the last from me, you hear?" he said with complete defiance, before he almost broke his nose when she slammed the door at his face. She pulled at her hair, saying, "This is gonna be a very, very long stay." 


	3. Ooh, a Fight!

Disclaimer: I do not own Tasuki, or any other character associated with Fushigi Yuugi. Period.  
  
"Good morning, Akire, you're an early bird, I see," Chichiri called out, spotting her sitting on a high tree branch. No reply. A minute and several branches later, Chichiri, tries to shake Akire awake, faint circles lining her eyes. Still, she slumbers on. Apparently, she was up all night in case she gets another midnight visit.  
  
"Don't bother, I'd prefer she stayed that way, anyway," Tasuki said, climbing onto the branch. Chichiri shook his head.  
  
"Just what is your problem with her? I know your, erm, tendencies towards women, but you know she's not that sort."  
  
"Oh, yeah? How would you know? She ain't no damsel in distress. I'm tellin' you, we gotta watch out for this one!"  
  
"Gonna watch out for what, pray tell?" Akire said, finally waking up. Tasuki waved a finger (not THAT finger, but with him you never know) at her and said, "See? She eavesdrops!"  
  
"What do you mean I eavesdrop? I'm right behind you two!"  
  
"So you're sugarcoating the fact that you sneaked up on us, huh?"  
  
"You're being an unreasonable idiot!"  
  
"You're being, you're being, secretive!"  
  
"Putty-faced, big-mouthed, drunkard punk!"  
  
"Show-off, big-shot, tomboyish, girlie!"  
  
Akire shrieked with anger, something you rarely see her do, as she deftly kicked Tasuki on the shin, causing him to fall off the branch. Not to be undone, he caught his balance on another branch and pulled down her leg. Caught off-guard, she lands on a nearby bush. He came after her and was greeted with a punch on the gut. Needless to say, he got the wind knocked out of him and was obviously all the more irritated by her.  
  
Tamahome, out for an early morning walk, saw the brawl and called out, "Hey, everyone! Ten bottles of wine for Tasuki getting seriously kicked in the butt!" Everyone, upon hearing him, immediately placed his or her bets.  
  
Narrowly missing his fist, Akire asked, "Why do you have it in for me so much? Are you a spy? Or are you a traitor?"  
  
Tasuki tried, and failed to land a punch, and said, "You wouldn't be so fond yourself if you grew up with sisters who hated you so much!" He sent his arm crashing down onto Akire, who blocked it with her own. "I, I didn't know that," she muttered weakly, rubbing her arm.  
  
It wasn't long before she could think of something to say when a flaming arrow embedded itself into the tree's trunk. She managed to put it out before the fire spread any further. Tasuki grabbed her hand and pointed at a person standing not far from where they are. That man waved his bow over his head and called out, "My dear, sweet Akire, I knew you would come after me, you and your genius cousins! And I see you've allied yourself with the 'good guys' of this dimension." The man, though in his late 20's (in an Amrian sense, but of course he's much older in human terms), has gray, thinning hair, large eyes that looks as if the eyelids have been stretched outward, and a sinister, toothy grin. Akire's face contorted with age. "Ikegai!"  
  
M. Quavers: note to Kamatari, remember Iro-guy? Nyork, nyork, nyork. 


	4. Ikegai

Disclaimer: I do not own Tasuki, or any other character associated with Fushigi Yuugi. Period.  
  
A/N: this chapter's dedicated to my friend, Kamatari. I know she so loves shady characters, and, well, here's to her.  
  
"That's the broken shell of a guy you said you're looking for?" Tasuki said. "I know, I know. Guess it's karma that's making his hair thinner earlier than expected," Akire replied.  
  
Ikegai cleared his throat, smoothing back what little is left of his hair, which didn't help his appearance at all. He stepped closer to them as he drew another arrow from his quiver. Akire was about to unsheathe her sword when she remembered she left it behind in her room "Curses! Of all the luck!" she hissed.  
  
Tasuki, meanwhile, drew out his tessen, and scoffed at her. "What the heck is your problem? The only thing he can throw at us is his arrow! What kinda chief of the guard are you? That guy plays with flames? I'll give him flames! LEKKA SHIEN!" At his command, flames shot out of the tessen towards Ikegai. Akire, not wanting to kill anybody, or turn anyone into pot-roast (though she'd probably want to lacerate Ikegai an inch from death), shrieked, "NO! NOT LIKE THAT!" as she immediately grabbed his arm and jerked it away.  
  
To their surprise, the jets of flame went right through Ikegai, who was still smirking. "Tut, tut, tut!" he said, waving his finger left to right. He then pointed to the tree, which got burnt awhile ago, but the burn marks were gone, as if nothing had happened. "An illusion! My dear, sweet Akire, I've been doing my homework when you came looking for me! I'm more powerful than you'd expect!" the Ikegai illusion said, slowly fading away. In anger, Akire kicked and clawed at the disappearing image, though she knew very well that it isn't going to do any good. "There's no proper curse for you in Amria, you slime!" she shouted.  
  
Suddenly, her head jerked back as Tasuki pulled at her hair. "Just what the HECK is going on here?" he demanded. She yanked away his hand and said, "Like I told you, I'm just here to catch the bad guy, what more do you have to know? And why do I have to tell YOU?"  
  
They went back in the palace (separately, mind you), and were surprised to see that everyone's just going about their normal routine. "Why on earth are you all sitting there doing nothing?" Akire said, exasperated. Nuriko, puzzled, replied, "Doing nothing? We got bored watching you. A minute ago you were fighting, then suddenly, you just stood there staring at nothing. And speaking about fighting," here she gave Tasuki an almighty whack on the head, "when are you gonna learn to behave yourself? She's a guest for crying out loud!" "A very SHADY guest!" Tasuki added hastily. Her temper rising again, Akire kicked him on the shin and stormed back to her room. "Now look what you've done, you insensitive fool!" Nuriko exclaimed, running after her.  
  
"He is IMPOSSIBLE!" Akire burst out, slamming the door behind her. She took out a picture of her and Janes together and sighed. "Why ever did I leave Amria for? Why didn't I just send Daryll or Earnest or one of my cousins?"  
  
"So that's what your country's called? Kinda strange, but I guess that's what foreign countries are like," Nuriko said, opening the door. Akire closed the door for her and sighed. "No offense to you, or the others, but where in China did you get that rascal? The streets?" Nuriko laughed, and patted her on the back. "He's a mountain person, literally! Before we 'took him away', he's the leader of a group of bandits." She watched with amusement as Akire's jaw dropped upon hearing this. "I'm staying with a felon!" Akire finally said, exasperated. "How on earth can you people stand him?" Nuriko leaned back against a pillow and replied, "Well, it's only a matter of making him not stand us instead. But enough about fangboy, tell me more about this Ikegai person."  
  
Akire drew a deep breath and said, "Well, it all started some years back. He had more hair then, and his eyes were a little less, um, dilated, but his ego! I wish I could get a needle and pop his ever-growing self-worship. Well, self-worship, till he met me. I was on patrol, and we caught him stealing a sack of apricots. He was smitten the minute he saw me, so when he finally got out of jail, he asked me out, calling me 'my dear, sweet Akire' and all other flattering words. At first I was just sorry for him, so I accepted. But I didn't like him! He was just too much to bear! So I dumped him the following day. But no! He's just not the guy to go down easily. Well, he first tried the 'right way' to win me back, making all sorts of promises and sending me all sorts of wonderful things. But I just knew, from the moment I saw him, that there's no changing a guy like that. That's when his self-esteem, and dastardly plots, met, shook hands and drove him crazy. From that time on, he did all sorts of evil deeds to 'get me back'. Well, it's either for revenge or he wants to force me back in his arms. It's really taking a toll on me and my, I mean, Her Excellency's kingdom. This is the third time I have to go looking for him."  
  
Nuriko sat up again and said, "That guy's just sick. Anyway, what happened the other two times?" Akire buried her face in her hands and said, "He was just too sly. He escaped, proving twice, how slippery he is, and just as crazy." Nuriko shook her head. "But, why won't you bring more of your men? Surely your job would be much easier when you have more people helping you." Akire replied, "I already know what kind of tricks he has up his sleeve, and I'm not risking any of my subordinates till I know how to stop him for good. And anyway, this is getting personal, so he better watch his sorry behind when I find out where he's hiding himself."  
  
Nuriko laid her hand on Akire's shoulder and said, "And you won't be alone of you need backup. We're all here for you. Well, everyone except Tasuki, but he might come round."  
  
"HA! Him, come round? You're a riot, Nuriko. I might as well ask Ikegai for a second date!"  
  
"Um, Akire, I don't think it's a good idea for you do say that aloud."  
  
"What, you afraid he'll hear me?"  
  
Nuriko pointed to the ceiling, and Akire gasped. There's Ikegai, floating just above their heads! "How the HECK did you get here, darn it!" Akire exclaimed.  
  
"Same way as I did the last time, my dear sweet Akire."  
  
"STOP CALLING ME THAT! I'M NOT YOUR AKIRE!"  
  
To her surprise, Nuriko ran to the door, and ran away. "Your friend's seeing things, you know, she sees you chasing me down the hall. Isn't it delightful?" Ikegai laughed. Quickly, Akire reached under the bed and grabbed her sword. "You better be an apparition, for your sake!"  
  
Ikegai slowly floated down, grabbed her head and kissed her. She immediately pulled away from him, wiping her mouth. "Akire, if I was an apparition, how would I enjoy that?"  
  
"You're a real nutcase!" she exclaimed. "50 years have passed and you're still a bad kisser!" She lunged at him with her sword at lightning speed, missing him by inches. "I can improve, Akire," he said sweetly. "THAT'S-NOT- THE POINT!" she shrieked, slashing at him. Just then, Tasuki broke down the door and wielded his tessen, burning Ikegai's arm. He shrieked, and flew out a window, with Akire chasing him.  
  
Ikegai leapt upon his horse, which he hid outside, and galloped away. Akire tried to run after him, but grew weak over running. Just then, who came running but Tasuki (altogether now: sigh! ) himself? Without warning, he carried her, and ran after Ikegai.  
  
Akire, of course, would have a thing or two to say when that happened, but they were gaining up on Ikegai, so she just kept her words to herself. "Almost, just a little more," she mumbled. Suddenly, Ikegai looked back, and in that millisecond that their gazes met, her Paladin's sixth sense kicked in. "Oh, no," she breathed, as a vision of a wide, gaping, endless void opened up before her eyes. Quickly, she clutched the sapphire ring on her finger. Haven't told you about that, haven't I? You see, every Paladin is granted the power for almost unlimited access to (no, not the Internet) any dimension, and that power happens to be "enclosed" inside a ring "issued" to a Paladin. So this is the same power that she's calling upon now.  
  
The ring then blazed with light, and she immediately transported herself and Tasuki back to the palace. Right before they "jumped", she saw Ikegai recite an incantation to open up a dimension gate to a void universe. "Thank heaven," she breathed. Unfortunately, Tasuki was, well, not so happy. "SO CLOSE!" he said after which he uttered a string of not so pleasant words. "He, he probably recited some spell to send us back here," Akire said to cover it up. Tasuki paused, then finally, he said, "Heh, a fine job you did back there. Could've caught him if SOMEONE started to pull her weight around here like she's supposed to, right?" Akire glared at him and said, "Damn it, let's just go back."  
  
Meanwhile, Ikegai's nursing his burns back at his lair (location, undisclosed. Rent, unpaid |;D). "Alas, that the red-haired infidel has spoiled my plans!" He recalled how the "red-haired infidel" scorched his arm and his dignity, how Akire, through foresight, managed to save herself and her companion from the void universe gate, and how, how they exchanged furious remarks and evil glances. "This may work out to my advantage," he mumbled through a toothy grin. 


	5. Aggravations

Chapter 5: Aggravations  
  
Disclaimer: Same old, same old. I do not own Tasuki, etc. etc.  
  
A/N: about Nuriko, still want to refer to him as a "her", so don't sue me.  
  
Normally, a very dedicated Paladin would be deep in thought right now, trying to find a weakness to his enemy, and plotting out possible ways of ensnaring the bad guys in a trap. Unfortunately, these times aren't very conventional, Akire is young according to Amrian standards (and you know how young people are), plus she has this pulsing vein at her temple, which just won't subside. Not to mention the fact that arguably the most loathsome creature on two legs happened to kiss her earlier, so you really cannot blame Akire if saving the universe is not on her to-do list that night. She has more, erm, impractical thoughts in mind.  
  
"WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING TO ME!" she screamed into her pillow. Like a child on a tantrum, she messed up the bedsheets and started kicking them off the bed. She probably would've torn out her hair if she fancied, but looking like a rag doll would only aggravate her more. She took off the boots she was wearing, and was about to throw it at the door, but it seemed as if someone else did it for her, on account of two loud, banging sounds coming from it.  
  
"WHAT DO YOU WANT!" she yelled, this time getting a chair and placed it against the door. Well, needless to say, Tasuki's on the other side.  
  
"OPEN THE DAMN DOOR YOU HOT-BLOODED WOMAN!" Tasuki yelled back, not to be undone. He pushed at the door so hard; it got wedged out of place. Alarmed, Akire leaned against it, trying to push it back.  
  
"You – aren't – the boss – of ME!" she countered, this time, reaching for her sword and stabbing it through the door. Though not entirely successful, the tip protruded into the other side and almost scratched Tasuki's face. Hmm, it was time to exercise a value he truly fails at: diplomacy.  
  
"Alright, alright, I'm lettin' go of the door," he said, stepping back. He saw the sword tip being drawn back; either signifying that she wants to listen or to try poking him again. "Nuriko sent me down here, 'kay? Not like I wanna speak to you. Feh, I'd sail to the other side of the world if someone told me I had to step into the same room as you, but Nuriko's gonna crush my head like a melon, and it's all your fault so open up." From inside the room, Akire groaned, and finally opened the battered door.  
  
Tasuki stepped into the room and looked around, scratching his head. "Weird. Your room is,"  
  
"Is what?" Akire said, raising an eyebrow and her hand itching to grab the sword hilts.  
  
"Is plain," he replied quickly. Akire sighed and said, "You really don't know me at all." Glancing at her bedsheets' mangled state; she immediately kicked it under her bed to conceal it. "And besides, you've been here before," she said. Tasuki pouted, and retorted, "It was dark that time. And why do you care?"  
  
Akire pointed at the door and said, "Hey, if you came here to insult me, get out." He pursed his lips in the hope that it would stop him from baring his teeth in anger. "Fine, fine, you win. I'm wrong, you're right, you happy?" he finally said.  
  
"So, why are you here, then, aside from being sent here?" Akire asked, taking a chair and sitting down. Of course, she offered no chair for Tasuki, so he would have to content with sitting on the floor. He said, "If you want to get rid of that Ikegai person, you better count me in. We both know we have to work together."  
  
"Why not with the others, then?" Akire asked.  
  
"Nuriko told me I have to convince you to include me first."  
  
"Waaiiiit a minute. I see what you're trying to do," Akire said, a smile on her lips. "You're being so nice and so cooperative just so you can get rid of me faster! No more Ikegai, no more Akire."  
  
"So? That way, we both win," Tasuki said. He glanced at the small hole her sword left behind on the door and said, "I can't stand you, and you can't stand me. So if we nab the guy, you'll be home free and I go back to living without an annoying girl sleeping in a room adjacent mine."  
  
Akire thought it over and said, "Hmm. For once, redhead, I agree with you. Okay, you can work with me, but I call the shots." Tasuki frowned at the arrangement and was about to counter, but he was tired anyway, so he trudged off to his room and slammed the door behind him. Akire, equally spent, took a quick bath and a change of clothes. She then pushed her closet against the now wobbling door, and snuggled up on her bed, but not before placing her sword above her pillow, just in case.  
  
That night, she had quite a strange dream. She's standing before a large, circular room with a sort of courtroom setup in front. She looked at herself, and saw that she was wearing white all over, with an ornate jeweled shoulder-piece and belt. "I know this place," Akire murmured, "the Court of the Councilmen. They, they were the ones who appointed me as Paladin. What in Amria am I doing here?" Then, blurry figures began to surface behind the panels and spoke in unison: "Judgement upon Akire, empress of Amria and the current Paladin. We observed you are falling back on your duties as protector of dimensions, and hereby give you notice. If we see no improvement, we will relieve you of your post, until such time as we see fit to restore you. Dismissed." As the ghost-like Council shuffled past her, one of them approached her and gave her the written notice. "B- but, I, wait! This is not fair!" she deplored, refusing to clutch the parchment. The councilman took her hand and made her close her hand around the notice. Then, he whispered, "Once, when I was among you living, I turn to my brethren for strength. Perhaps, you might want to do the same." With that, he disappeared, leaving Akire standing in the now darkening courtroom, staring with trembling hands at the message she's holding in her hand. "But, but this is, is, impossible," she muttered.  
  
She woke up, with the stars still winking sleepily from their lofty places. Looking around her room, Akire was very glad that she was just dreaming, that is, until she felt something in her hand. Upon looking at it, she found a neatly rolled up parchment, the same one she saw in her dream. She opened it up, crumpled it into a ball, and tossed it away. Where, she did not care. "I'm doing the best I CAN! What more do you WANT!" she cried, over and over until she fell asleep once more.  
  
Morning came, bringing no morsel of comfort to Akire, as she sat up from bed, staring blankly outside. "'We will relieve you of your post...' the nerve! I'm doing my job, I work hard rain or shine, and in places that take me far from the land I know, the land I'm supposed to rule. And they're going to reprimand me for NOT BEING DEDICATED ENOUGH! Strident, self- appointed, righteous pigs!"  
  
She heard a knock on the door, a polite knock at that. Akire was about to say "Come in" when she remembered she moved her closet to block the door. "Oh! Um, JUST A MINUTE!" she yelled, changing her clothes quickly. She was about to push away the closet when Nuriko swept it aside instead. "Having trouble with the furniture?" Nuriko said, beaming. She carried a tray of food and set it upon Akire's bed. "Oh, thank you!" Akire said, fixing up the bed a little and placing the tray on a small table next to her. Nuriko looked at the hole in the door, and the messed up bed. "Do you need any help?" she asked. Akire smiled and shook her head, saying, "Um, I'd like to be alone for awhile. I can fix the place up myself, but thank you anyway." Nuriko nodded, and went away.  
  
Akire then closed the door and opened a window. She breathed in the cool, morning air. "Hmm, I wonder," she murmured, glancing way up at the roof. A whimsical mood befell her, and she proceeded to climb up the side of the wall, till she reached the tiled roof. She then laid herself down and sighed. "It's much cooler up here than I expected," Akire said, lazily watching the clouds roll slowly past the blue sky. She whispered, "If only I can do this all day...no. The Council would probably take that against me. 'Lazing around', that's what they'll call it."  
  
"So is that what's bothered you last night? Sheesh, could've kept down your screaming," a voice behind her said. She sat up and saw that Tasuki was lying down right behind her. "You, you heard me?" she asked.  
  
"Duh! My room's adjacent yours, remember? You kept me up the rest of the night. I was thinking you went crazy or somethin'," he replied, taking a piece of loose roof tile and hurling it as far as he could. Akire, a little less irate that usual, said, "I'm sure you understand. What if someone just told you out of the blue that you're not a Suzaku Seishi anymore?"  
  
Tasuki grabbed another roof tile and said, "Huh. I say good riddance," here he threw the tile away again, saying, "hope it hits Tamahome square on the head." Akire, upon hearing this, smiled mischievously. "You liar. I hear Tamahome is Miaka's boyfriend." She let out a sarcastic gasp. "You're jealous, aren't you, lover-boy?" Seeing his reaction, she threw a fit of giggles. But Tasuki wasn't going to be beaten hands-down. "Well, then, I saw you goggle at Hotohori the minute your ship docked. I bet you know where his room is by now." This time, it was his turn to snigger.  
  
"I don't look at him that way, redhead!"  
  
"Yeah, well, I don't look at Miaka that way, neither!"  
  
"Um, I think your grammar's wrong, mind saying that again? Oh, I'm sorry, you said 'neither'! That makes you an idiot, because you just contradicted your own statement!"  
  
Strangely, Akire didn't feel too angry with him right that moment. In fact, she was enjoying the verbal exchange, and it seemed to calm her down a bit, or at least take her mind off her present problem. Realizing this, she grinned to herself, and fell silent.  
  
"So, what's our next course of action, 'O Royal Highness'?" Tasuki asked. At first, Akire was alarmed, thinking he discovered one of her secrets, but then, she thought, "It's Tasuki, almost everything's a sarcastic comment." She replied, "Not sure yet. The first thing to do is to find out where he's hiding, then infiltrate his lair, but I don't know how to start yet. We then find out what they're doing-" "-can't we just beat 'em up, plain and simple?" Tasuki interrupted. Sigh, she said to herself, how barbaric. "No, dum-dum. What if they've orchestrated a trap, knowing we'd come? Then we'd all be eliminated," she told him. "You're a fan of big words, d'you know that?" he said, not really out of annoyance, but out of boredom, or the fact that he can't say something intelligent.  
  
After this short (and in the end, meaningless) debate, they've run out of words to say, and for the first time in record history, they both stopped bickering and fell silent in quite a long while. Akire was deep in thought about her pending sanction, so the only way to prevent this is to capture Ikegai for good. But to do this, she's going to need help, expert help. She needs someone who's quite up-to-date with dimension workings and Paladin work. She needs the help of, " '...the help of brethren," she thought, remembering the words of the Councilman who handed her the written notice. "'...the help of brethren, brethren, DARYLL!" she exclaimed, surprising Tasuki so much he almost slid off the roof. "Dangnabit, woman!" he said, rubbing his ear, "stop doing that!" Akire rested her head upon her hands, laughing hysterically. Daryll! Of course! Why didn't she think of it earlier? Of all the people she knew it was her own cousin that provided the help she needed. "Well, it was nice talking to you, for once, redhead," she said, standing up and started climbing down back to her room window. When she was out of earshot, Tasuki murmured, "Heck, was nice talking to you to." Then, realizing what he said, he shook his head. "Her craziness is rubbing off onto me!" he thought.  
  
Akire stumbled into her room, and rampantly seizing a quill and paper. She scribbled a note, saying: Dear Cuz. Need some help on finding Ikegai ASAP. Hope you can give me some pointers. Give my love to all back home. –Akire. She folded it hastily, and using her ring, opened a small portal to Amria on the floor, and promptly dropped the note in. In a twinkling, the portal disappeared. She was about to sit back and relax, when she thought, "Oh, no. What if there's a time difference from this dimension? And, darn! Why didn't I just tell him that personally? The note might not reach him!" Plagued by these grim possibilities, Akire was left to her waiting, and watching, for signs of help, admonition, or Ikegai. 


	6. Yohoho and a bottle of wine!

Chapter 6: Yo-ho-ho and a Bottle of Wine!  
  
Disclaimer: bla-bla-bla, you know the drill. I have no right to own Tasuki or any other character associated with him. Wow, I even bothered to elaborate that; I must be going crazy.  
  
"It's been 4 hours and 12 minutes since I dropped off that note to Daryll," Akire said, tickling the ear of a cat that just entered her room. "Yeah, I know, why don't I just go over there now, and tell him? But, Kitty, realize that if I do that, who knows how much damage Ikegai could've done while I'm not around. So I'm stuck to the waiting, my feline friend."  
  
One of the things that really annoy Akire is a long, long wait. She would rather find herself under a precariously placed 1-tonne steel bar seconds before it falls than sit in the same room, doing the same thing all over again, for a very long time. "Well, cat, if I'm going to do the waiting game, I might as well do something interesting. Being cooped up here is too much for me." The cat mewed in agreement, as Akire strode out of her room and tried to look for Nuriko.  
  
She found Nuriko talking to Miaka, who were about to go outside when she caught up with them. "Hey, guys! Mind if I join you?" They were about to agree when Tasuki's head popped out from the top of the door-shade (ugh, at a loss for words). Miaka said, "Of course you can," "if Tasuki comes," Nuriko added. "You crazy (bleep)! You ain't gonna make me!" Tasuki said. Akire's cheeks puffed up in annoyance. Miaka and Nuriko whispered to each other, while Tasuki and Akire eyed each other evilly. Finally, Nuriko said, "If you two come, we'll buy you wine." "WINE!" the other two yelled. Akire, of course, never drank any before, but she feels like it would be a really, really good time to start. Tasuki, well, you know.  
  
So, the four went out for a stroll, Nuriko and Miaka at the center, and Akire and Tasuki on the extreme sides. The girls (Tasuki has no taste in shopping. Feh.) spotted a ( to all Pinoys: ano English ng tiange?) marketplace with all kinds of things for sale. Akire, very homesick, bought a lot of trinkets for herself, and for the ladies back home. They were about to go back when Tasuki promptly reminded them to buy a big bottle o' wine. Akire willingly donated some of her money to buy it, not for the sake of camaraderie with Tasuki, of course.  
  
That night, when they were about to eat out, Tasuki ate so fast you'd think the devil was chasing him, just so he wouldn't share a table with Akire. This, of course, touched a nerve or two, so for that grand occasion, she popped open the wine bottle. She was about to take a big gulp out of it when Tasuki grabbed the bottleneck. "Hold it, you don't mean you're the only one drinking from that." He tried to yank it away from her, but her fist was frozen tight to the bottleneck.  
  
Knowing this would solve nothing, they both called for two extra mugs. Now, all they have to do was to let the other one pour out the first helping. Over their dead bodies. Neither of the two budged much less lifted a finger from their death grip. "Hoo, boy, this is gonna be a loooong night," Tamahome said, taking out one of his beloved coins and said, "Okay, now, who wants-" "-HEADS!" Tasuki and Akire shouted out. Glaring at each other, Akire finally yielded to Tasuki, with much reluctance, so he gets to choose heads.  
  
Tamahome tossed the coin (um, duh...) as everyone watched it land in suspended animation. The coin, as if spurred on by their waiting with bated breath, kept on stubbornly rolling around on its side, till 3 minutes later, it finally halted. Akire was about to pick it up with her left hand (the right one held tightly onto the bottle) when Nuriko snatched it away. "Tut, tut! WE look," she said. She cupped the coin inside her hands, and let the other see it. Sarcastically, they all nodded and looked at each other, saying, "Oooh," or "I see," and nodding some more, till Tasuki lost his patience and yelled, "If no-one tells us who goes first, I'll ram this bottle down someone's throat!" Nuriko looked darkly at him and murmured, "If YOU don't shut up, I'LL ram it down your throat for you. Alright, it's tails."  
  
Akire stuck out her tongue childishly at Tasuki, as he slowly let go of the bottle. She poured the wine into the mug till it almost reached the brim. Taking a deep, determined breath, she drained her mug till the last drop. Instantly, her face began to redden, and she felt a wave of dizziness rush to her head. "My turn!" Tasuki said in glee, grabbing the bottle from her. "That is, unless you give up." Perking up and ignoring her blurring vision, she said louder and rougher than she did intended, "Damn straight I won't! I betcha won't go past your second mug!" He just glared at her, as he poured out the wine into his mug, and without hesitating, gulped down everything, except the mug of course.  
  
Akire, by now, shook off most of the effects of her first drink, so confidently, she drank her second draught. Feeling quite defiant that time, she set down her drained mug with a whack. "Don't you go lookin' down on me now, redhead!" she barked.  
  
Surprised but not very bothered, Tasuki drank his second mug with fervor, but was now quite red in the face. "If you drain your next draught, I'll pay you whatever you want!" Tasuki dared. By now, the fuss drew quite a crowd, and everyone was placing their bets. This latest development caused quite a lot of oohs, and aahs, in the crowd.  
  
Feeling up to the challenge, but by now seeing everything in double, Akire hastily grabbed at the bottle 3 times, two times missing, the third time almost spilling the contents. Not even bothering to pour it into the mug, she drank her bit straight from the bottle. "Since there's only a little of this stuff left, if you finish this I'll pay you twice the price I had in mind!" she said, pushing the bottle at him, daring him to do it.  
  
Tasuki, not taking his eyes off his strong contender (actually, he's staring at a wooden post behind her, but drunk as he his, you can't blame him), grabbed the bottle and draining it completely. Now, both of them are very, very red in the face, thinking quite irrationally, and don't have the 20:20 vision of a typical person. Laughing hysterically, Nuriko and Tamahome carefully guided the two to an empty area and each whispered to the drunks, "If you can take the other one out with one punch, I'll give you all my money." Smiling quite stupidly, Akire and Tasuki were really about to raise their fists to punch the other one, but it seems like the wine gets to have the last laugh, as the two of them fell backwards, out cold. Needless to say, their companions were laughing their heads off right now.  
  
The morning after that, Akire woke up, with a gut-wrenching headache, and an upset stomach. I don't think I need to describe what comes next. So, after, um, puking her guts out, she took a very long bath, and drank a lot of water. "Ugh, no more drinks, Akire, very bad idea," she told herself. She checked her drawer afterwards, but still no reply from Daryll. "No, no, no, no! I can't wait any longer!" she cried, clutching her aching head. Okay, I'll rest for the whole day, then tomorrow, I go ahead. Alone." 


	7. Of notes and wild goose chases

Chapter 7: Of notes and wild goose chases.  
  
Disclaimer: Tasuki. Fushigi Yuugi. Not mine. Got it?  
  
Now, I bet y'all wondering why it's taking so darn long for Daryll to reply. You can't really blame him. It's all a case of absentmindedness in Akire's part, though there was a time difference between the two dimensions.  
  
Okay, so Akire dropped the note carelessly through the dimension portal, without stopping to think where in Amria it might land on. As it so unfortunately happened, the other end of the portal appeared in the borders of Amria, some 20 feet in the air. In Akire's haste, she forgot to direct the portal's other end at Amria Palace, or even Daryll's room.  
  
So, the note appeared on the other end, buffeted by strong winds, landing on top of a tree, staying there in a bird's nest for a day, until a woodcutter cut down the tree for timber. Seeing the note, he stuffed it into his pocket to carry it off back to Amria. Around this time Akire was talking to the cat, waiting for the note, though it was only a matter of hours on her end.  
  
While in a town a few hours later, a pickpocket made off with the woodcutter's pocket money, and unwittingly grabbed the note along with the other stuff. When that happened, as fate would have it, Janes (Akire's sister), Daryll and Akire's other cousins were buying stuff for dinner. Daryll lagged behind, and in so doing bumped into the pickpocket, who was chased by the woodcutter. Daryll immediately pinned down the robber, and returned the money to the grateful woodcutter. Then, while checking to see if all his money's accounted for, he spotted the note, and gave it to Daryll.  
  
"Janes! Oy, all of you! A note from Akire!" Of course, this caught the attention of everyone else, and so immediately flocked around Daryll to read the note. "'Dear cuz, need some help trying to find Ikegai. Reply ASAP'. You guys go on ahead, I better start on this."  
  
So, Daryll consumed another day and a half trying to figure out how to find Ikegai's concealed quarters, as Akire and Tasuki drank like there's no tomorrow in their drinking match. He even considered coming over to help Akire personally, but he knew she wouldn't allow that, and who was he to contest his cousin? Never mind her being an empress, or the Paladin, if you're a relative, you go first.  
  
Back to Akire  
  
Akire, after drinking her 5th glass of water, checked to see if all's ready. She fastened a gray cloak over her clothes, and she changed her usual footgear into almost knee-high boots. She strapped a dagger and her sword to her belt, and she left a letter at her table, thanking everyone for their time, and that she went to check on something. "Hopefully I know what I'm doing," she muttered to herself, as she loosened the Velcro strap on her leather gloves. "Too bad Velcro hasn't been invented here yet."  
  
Akire then checked for the umpteenth time if a note from Daryll has arrived yet, but since, unknown to her, he's still trying to figure it out, she sighed and shook her head. "He probably didn't get it," she muttered disappointedly.  
  
Knowing Nuriko and the others would object to her going alone, she snuck out of her room through the window and chose a quicker path to the backwoods. "Well, if I was a bad gal hiding from the authorities, I'd choose a place like this, but Ikegai wouldn't be dumb enough to hide in a place this close to Hotohori's palace," she said, her voice drowned by the rustling leaves and eerily cold wind.  
  
Back at Amria  
  
Edward, Daryll's older brother and therefore another one of Akire's cousins (there are a lot more, trust me), found him sleeping on his desk, clutching the note on one hand and the other hand resting on three thick books.  
  
Upon hearing the door open, Daryll woke up and slowly lifted his head. "Hey, bro, what's the time?" Edward laughed, and said, "Time for you to wake up! D'you have the answer?" Daryll suddenly perked up and said, "Shoot! Not yet!" In despair, he flipped through the volumes and volumes of books lying beside him, as Edward watched in amusement.  
  
"Eh, Daryll," Edward said, "do you know what exactly are you looking for?" Daryll shook his head. Edward laid a hand on his shoulder and said, "You know, whenever Akire tries to track down a criminal, she traces-"  
  
"What! Say that again!" Daryll said, barely containing his excitement. Puzzled, Edward said, "Uh, whenever Akire tracks down someone, she traces-"  
  
"YES! Why didn't I think of it before? Thanks, bro!" Daryll immediately took out another piece of paper and scribbled a note on in. He then rushed outside and fetched his Mailbox, a sort of inter-dimensional postal service ("I told Akire to get one of these but no!") he made himself. Quickly dropping in the note, he wiped his forehead with his handkerchief. "Whew! That was hard!"  
  
Okay, enough about them, let's go to Akire's room, where Tasuki was oh so puzzled as to why he can't hear any insults from the other room. "Hey, hot- blooded, feeling empress-of-the-world! Nuriko and Miaka are looking for ya!" Silence. Not even the sound of a blade being stabbed through the door, or a broken vase can be heard, no matter how much the fang-boy strained his ears to listen. This is getting weird.  
  
He pushed open the door, again wondering why she hasn't even tried to block him. Stepping inside, he's greeted by an empty room, with everything folded up or put neatly in their respective places. "Huh, packed up and went away early, the wimp," he murmured, and finding strangely that he missed the endless arguments.  
  
Looking around he spotted a neatly written letter lying on a table. "Probably a love-note for Hotohori," he snickered, as he read: To everyone, thanks for letting me stay here. It's really nice, this place, though I think you should build stronger doors. Nuriko, your friendship is invaluable, thanks. Oh, and PLEASE tell that mountain person to behave. But still, it was fun while it lasted. You must be wondering where I went. Tasuki probably thinks I packed up and left early like some wimp. I'm only doing what I really set out to do. All I can say is, I'll try and make sure that Ikegai won't ever bother all of you again. Yours sincerely, Akire."  
  
He crumpled up the letter saying, "Why, that double-crosser! She went after Ikegai without me!" He looked at the window ledge and saw a boot-print on it. "Two can play at that!" He was about to jump out of the window, when a blue flash startled him, and a partly smoking piece of paper suddenly appeared on the table. He grabbed it, and read, "For Akire's eyes only. What the heck? Stupid, confidential paper!" he yelled, as he jumped out of the window with the paper in his fist.  
  
Akire is on the verge of throwing another tantrum, as she sat frustrated under a tree. "I don't know what to DO!" she cried. "I can roam this wilderness for ages without finding Ikegai! Spending a day with the redhead seems like a walk in the park next to this!"  
  
She wrapped up her cloak tighter to force out the cold, as she listened for signs of trouble. After awhile, she decided to doze off, seeing as the coast is clear, when she heard very faint footfalls, coming from nearby. Drawing her sword, she quietly circled the perimeter, taking care not to let whatever it was know where she is. She strained her ears and sure enough, the footfalls are getting closer. Not moving, she waited for the time to strike. She can see his shadow now. She saw the shadow raise its hand. Her hand twitched uneasily as she prepared to hack this guy to pieces. Three...two...one. 


	8. On wit the Chase!

Chapter 8: On with the chase!  
  
Disclaimer: I disclaim FY. Questions?  
  
M. Quavers: Sorry I've been away so very long, I'll try and upload more often ;D Well, on with the show!  
  
Akire's hand shook as she held her sword, ready to hack this guy to pieces. Three...two...one.  
  
"AAAARRRRRRRGGGH!"  
  
"HELL! DAMMIT WOMAN, YOU ALMOST SLICED MY HEAD OFF!"  
  
Akire's sword slashed through air as the would-be attacker instinctively ducked his head. She paused to look at her "assailant", who turns out to be Tasuki. Out of shock and sudden relief, she collapsed on her knees, sobbing. Rolling his eyes, Tasuki sat cross-legged beside her and said, "What in hell did I do now, 'Highness'?"  
  
Still sobbing, Akire suddenly lunged at him with her sword, pinning him down. She held the blade to his neck, and shouted, "DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN! EVER! AND STOP CALLING ME HIGHNESS!" He tried to get up to the point of pushing her aside, when she collapsed, her cheek pressed against his shoulder. Safe to say, he's totally bewildered by this, and quite doesn't know what to do.  
  
Akire felt relieved and safe, now that she's with someone she knows, especially now that she's in the arms of, of, of, "AAAAAKK!" Oh, well, it was too good to be true anyway (in short, mushy moments never lasts a minute in my watch). She quickly pushed herself away from him and stood up, brushing away dust and sheathing her sword. "Really, Tasuki, there's no need to go all mushy on me." Tasuki was about to open his mouth to argue, then thought the better of it and muttered, "Women, really."  
  
He remembered the note he was clutching in his fist and was about to give it to her, when he changed his mind and quickly withdrew his hand. "Oy, what's that?" Akire said, glancing at his fist, and seeing her name on it. He smiled, showing his pointy teeth and said, "You'll never know." Akire bit her lower lip and grabbed at his hand. "Give it!"  
  
He raised his hand above his head, waving the little piece of paper gleefully. Not really thinking rationally, she kept on reaching for the paper, tiptoeing and stretching her arms, but he kept right on pulling the note away from her. "I'll never let you have it," Tasuki said in a singsong voice. "Then fine!" Akire exclaimed, crossing her arms. "Then I'll tell Miaka that you're just an insensitive moron who picks on people! I'll tell her you're no better than the pathetic pickpockets in your dirty streets! And I'm going right on telling her that the minute I get back! So don't you give me that paper, I dare you!" Frowning, but also realizing a bit of truth in her words, tossed the note to her. "What am I going to do with it, anyway?" he muttered.  
  
"For Akire's eyes only," she read silently. "Dear Akire. So nice to hear from you. We're all fine. If you want to find Ikegai, remember that he channels his powers using magic based on different beliefs. I know every time you use you Paladin powers depletes your strength, but try using them to track down his energy signatures from different elements. Good luck. If not, you can always right back. –Daryll." She smiled and was about to fold away the paper when she saw a small note scribbled below the message. "PS. When ARE you getting a boyfriend? That way, you won't be alone all the time." She hurriedly crumpled the note.  
  
"So, what's it say?" Tasuki asked impatiently.  
  
"Shut up, and what's it to you?" She turned away and clutched her ring. A faint light appeared on the stone, and she quickly wrapped her hand with her cloak to conceal it, as she crouched down with her ear to the ground, pretending to listen to who knows what (couldn't have her blow her cover, right?). "D'you really think you'll hear him when you do that?" Tasuki needled again.  
  
"SHH!" Akire said, closing her eyes, as she concentrated, trying to find the trails of energy that Daryll said led to Ikegai. Finally, she could feel a thread of energy leading south. She quickly followed it, with her hand touching the ground. "T-this w-way," she urged Tasuki, as she felt her energy being drained. After half an hour of stumbling and nearly losing the invisible trail, she collapsed, her face dripping with sweat. "Boy, you tire easily," Tasuki remarked. Not letting herself be humiliated in front of him, she unbuckled her sword and used it to support herself. "Only a little way to go, the, um, sounds, are getting stronger," she whispered. "Or you're losing your sanity," Tasuki snickered.  
  
Tasuki's POV (first time I did this, eh? Sorry if I get it wrong - Quavers)  
  
Whoop-dee-do. What a lousy afternoon. And here I thought I'm gonna get some action. Instead, I get stuck with this idiotic girl. Only a short distance of walkin and she's all weak and tremblin. Look at her, as if she really can hear that Ikegai person. Next thing I know she'll try to ditch me or somethin.  
  
Tryin to salvage the rest of my time, I look around the place. You never know what you'll find and, hold on. A shadow flickered by awhile ago. Ahh, what the hell, Akire-baka ain't gonna notice I'm gone, so might as well look closer.  
  
I quietly walked over to where I saw "it", and found nothing interesting. I started to turn back and follow Akire again, when this fist just appeared out of nowhere and socked me on the nose! Before I could dent his head, two more pairs of hands appeared and pushed me over a cliff, which I SWEAR wasn't there before.  
  
So here I am, fallin down, waitin for the ground to compress my head, and, what the HECK am I doin? I quickly took out my tessen and shouted out the incantation. If I'm gonna fall, I sure as heck will make sure the bad guys fall in after me. "LEKKA SHIEN! HA, TAKE THAT YOU--!"  
  
Tasuki can't respond, having this big, bloody mess on his head, since he already hit the bottom of the cliff...  
  
This really isn't Akire's day. Her energy's all drained trying to trace Ikegai, and now the trail just, poof! disappears. And, to top it all off, there are three Ikegai's circling her right now! "I so am tired," she remarked weakly, slowly crouching down to the ground. As her eyesight dimmed, she could see that one of Ikegai's hands were all bloody and black and, yes, smoking. "Ha! Good, old, Tasuki."  
  
Great, no-one conscious to get a POV and, wait a minute, I think there's one more guy, hold on...  
  
Ikegai's POV  
  
I'm such a cheater, aren't I? Now, don't give me all that nonsense about using astral projections of me to harm others is a cowardly act. I got my dear, sweet Akire now, haven't I? And I got rid of that foulmouthed guy who's bothering her.  
  
Dear me, though, I wish I hadn't been there to watch my "holograms" do my work for me, that Tasuki guy injured me again! On the same arm! On the same week! The same way! Huh, at least he won't be bothering anyone anytime soon.  
  
I march off to my hideout, which very nearly got discovered by my resourceful Akire, if not for me, myself and my intervention. I had the other two carry the orange oaf, while I get to carry my empress to my castle.  
  
"Put him in chains and be done with it!" I chuckled, as my mental- projection minions tie him up and hoist him a few feet from the dungeon especially rough. And how about Akire? No, I won't put her in a cell, no, not in the same cell as Tasuki, anyway.  
  
But before I tie HER up, she has something that I've been meaning to have for a very long time now. Something that may just sway the whole of Amria to do my bidding, and hold all dimensions under my command. Couldn't leave her with that kind of power, now, couldn't we? And that's exactly why I have to take Akire's ring, the source of all her extraordinary abilities.  
  
(M. Quavers: Hey, dudes! I now dedicate this chapter to the 24th Altruist. Why? What special hidden meaning must we delve in this chapter? Nothing! I just want to dedicate it.) 


	9. Inside the Psychotic Lion's Den

Chapter 9: Inside the Psychotic Lion's Den  
  
Disclaimer: I disclaim FY. Questions?  
  
A/n: sorry if I misspelled a term or something, or get it wrong.  
  
"Hmm, well, this is a pretty pickle." Akire woke up, and as expected, all tied up. Her chains were fastened to a rough wall inside her cell, which just looks like a miniature cave. In a similar cavern opposite her, Tasuki hung a foot or two from the ground, chains fastened to his arms and feet. Still powerless from her previous attempt to track Ikegai down, she deemed the time too early to use her powers again.  
  
"Oh, good, the high and mighty Akire has awaken from her slumber," Tasuki said. His face as well as his nose is dripping with blood, though a crude bandage was wrapped around his wound. Safe to say he looked more messed up than Akire.  
  
"Look, I don't need to hear this right now!" Akire screamed, her voice echoing in the dungeon. She tried standing up, but her chains were too short, and her effort caused her to jerk back and hit her head on the wall. "Hey, you're not the only one with the problem here, lady!" Tasuki retorted teeth clenched in anger and pain (it ain't no picnic tied up and hanging from the air after falling from a cliff). "The only reason I'm still alive is because your cuckoo ex-boyfriend wanted me squirming when he executes me, which I think is very, VERY SOON!" he continued.  
  
Akire bit her lip, looking at his condition. "Look, Tasuki, I never asked for your help," she said softly. "And I'd be lying if I said I wasn't sorry if I dragged you here in some way." Tasuki, after a minute of silence, calmed down a bit. A bit. "Boy, that Ikegai's brain's all messed up, huh?" he finally said.  
  
"It's gone to pot, that's what it is," Akire laughed, finally relieved they weren't going to do another scream fest in the least likely of places.  
  
"How'd you end up with a guy like that?" he asked. Akire shook her head and said, "Believe me, if a guy tried to do what he did to me now, I'd stick my fist in his craw!" She balled up her fist to stress her point, and then came a wave of heart-rending shock. The ring is gone! She tried looking over her shoulder to see for herself, and found that all that's left of her ring was the indentation it made on her finger.  
  
"I lost my ring, THE ring," she whimpered, thinking that Ikegai took it. Tasuki, after wiping some blood off his face with his shoulder, said, "You worry about jewelry in a place like this? All you women are bonkers. What's so important about it?" Still unable to tell the truth, she replied, "It, it has sentimental value."  
  
Tasuki smiled maliciously and said, "What, did Hotohori give it to you?" Akire narrowed her eyes and said, "What do you mean?" Tasuki flashed that toothy grin of his, saying, "Oh, don't you try to hide it, missy, I bet you have a thing for him!" Akire's jaw dropped, and she said, "Hey, I treat him with respect. R-E-S-P- E-C-T, Tasuki, not infatuation. A few smiles here and there don't count as 'a thing'. Unless," she continued, this time having the same spiteful smirk, "you're basing it on personal experience. Tell me, do YOU feel that way for Miaka?"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Aw, c'mon, fang boy, I see the way you stare at her!"  
  
"Stare at her? Maybe 'cause starin' at someone when you talk to her isn't a crime!"  
  
"You sure?"  
  
"Hey, I ain't the one in love with an aristocrat!"  
  
"What's wrong with that? I mean, I'm not in love with Hotohori! Maybe you are in love with, with, with NURIKO!"  
  
Tasuki's eyes widened, and then closed tight, as he stuck out his tongue and grimaced. "You realize what you're saying, Akire?"  
  
"What? She doesn't look bad at all!" Akire replied.  
  
"Eh, she?" Tasuki said, "heh, when we get outta this mess, I'm gonna havta clear up a coupla things for you." Akire smiled, admiring his optimism and said, "If, no, when we get out of here, I won't be bothering you again, and you stop with the Hotohori cracks. So, truce?"  
  
The seishi replied (after spitting out a tooth that got loose), "Ah, what the hell, why not? But don't bring up the Nuriko thing, you hear? You'll give me nightmares!" Akire said, "I still don't get why Nuriko seems so loathsome to you. Am I the only one who thinks she isn't that bad?"  
  
Shaking his chains, Tasuki tried again to see if his hand slips through the manacle, but it's just too tight. "I feel like my arms are gonna fall off, Akire, any bright ideas?"  
  
"I have a few! Why don't I execute you in, oh, say 30 minutes, and it'll end your suffering?" a voice said. Craning their necks, Akire and Tasuki saw Ikegai with 9 more replicates of himself standing at the entrance. "After, of course, I get married to Akire! If I execute you earlier, that would ruin the atmosphere!" Ikegai continued.  
  
"YOU ARE SICK!" Akire spat. Ikegai frowned at the remark, and summoned two of his replicates. "You know what to do," he said. To Akire's horror, the two servants took hold of Tasuki's chains, hoisted him a few feet higher, and then releasing the chains. "Just a little incentive, Akire," Ikegai beamed. "It won't matter, you'll kill him either way," she replied, teeth bared. "Sheesh, Akire, I ain't dead yet!" Tasuki remarked weakly, before receiving a kick in the mouth.  
  
Ikegai shook his head. "The youth of today are so rebellious! And since I anticipated your unwillingness, I have something for you, Akire." He took out a small bottle, grabbed Akire by the chin and forced her to drink it (half of the drink, of course, got spat onto his face). Wiping away the drink from his face with his sleeve, he said, "No matter, half will do the job." Akire, a few minutes later, found out what this means, as slowly but surely, her body became numb, though she can still be able to breathe. Barely having strength to speak, she mouthed something just foul enough to surpass the PG-rating of this story by a bit.  
  
A cruel grin curled from Ikegai's lips as he watched the concoction take effect. When he made sure Akire can't do a thing, he untied her and carried her on his shoulder. "Bring the other one along," he commanded his other selves. "Hey, I have a name, you whacko!" Tasuki hollered, before being hoisted to his feet.  
  
Tasuki's POV  
  
Ouch. Ouch. Ouch.  
  
Hehe, oww! Hurts to think when you're gushing with blood, tied for an hour while dangling from the ground, then hittin' the floor afterwards. Ain't no picnic, that's for sure. Heck, the guy who did this to me isn't even one of those seryuu guys. Guess it's what you get when you deal with foreigners, you never know what they drag along. But then again that's exactly why I'm a Suzaku seishi right now.  
  
Regrets, Tasuki, m'boy? Kinda too late for that now, kid. Better think of something fast before you get shoved into the big, fat pot roast. But what has Her Highness Akire done this whole time, anyway? Should've known what I was gettin' into in the first place. Ahh, 'least I ain't marryin' Ikegai.  
  
Wonder what the crackpot's plannin' for me? Not often I think about how someone's gonna do me in. He gonna burry me alive? Trap me in ice? Tie me to a stake and feed me to the sharks? Cut off my body parts limb for limb? Poke my eyes out and let 'em bleed? Yuck. It'll probably be nicer if he just dropped me into a cauldron of fire. Nice n' quick.  
  
H-how long are we gonna walk? Sheesh, you'd think that foreign executioners are gonna show ya a bit of pity before they chop of your 'ead. Far ahead, I see Akire dangling like a rag doll from Icky's shoulder, mouth half-open, pale complexion, but eyebrows slanted into a permanent frown. Tell you the truth, I'd be lyin' if I said I wasn't feeling sorry for her right now. But anybody else finds out, I'd stuff a rock in my mouth an' deny it. "Faster, worm!" The Icky clone tells me. Faster, huh? I'll show him faster, right while I kick him in the groin, and that's exactly what I did. While he rolls on the ground in pain, clutching his you-know-what, his groupies gather round and tried to pound me. Heh, can't say they failed, but 'least they all won't try to have any kids in the near future when I was through with them.  
  
And so at last I arrived in the wherever I'm supposed to die, all bloody n' bruised. They now tied my feet together, though it took 'em a while, considering I was kickin' and screamin' like the entire underworld broke loose. They now shoved me to the ground and one of 'em stepped on my head, so's I can see Icky.  
  
Sure enough, he's there right in front of me, holding a torch. He shot one look at me, and then dropped the torch into this deep pit in front of him. He then ordered one of his minions to pull me to my feet. "I really, really, really HATE pyrokinetics," he said, though I had no idea what a pyrokineewhatchacallit is. "And so I built this pyre befitting someone with as lame and ordinary powers as you. Final words?"  
  
"Yeah, if my powers are lame, what happened to your arm?" I snickered. I see his mouth twitch, just itching to give the command to push me into the flamin' pit. At least my guess came close. Ikegai said, "Well, I know you just cannot resist childish remarks, so I'm giving you a moment to choose your farewell speech carefully. Make sure, though, that Akire hears," here he points to Akire, lyin' on the ground mumbling something I bet she copied from me.  
  
But, come to think of it, I guess I do have something to say. With my hands tied behind my back, I reached for my belt, and pulled out something I stuck between it. See, when we were bein' dragged to the dungeon, I woke up, and noticed somethin' shiny on the floor of the dungeon. Before the Icky guys hoisted me in chains, I slipped it into my belt. And the more I talked to Akire, the more I think it really belongs to her.  
  
"Uh, Akire, you listening?" I looked at her, and I see the corner of her mouth slowly curving into a frown. She's probably thinkin', nitwit, I'm numb, not deaf. "uh, right, okay," I stuttered, clutching the Thing, "I know I've been a jerk for some time now, and I ain't sayin' I take it back, but there is one thing I wanna say sorry for." I wiggled my fingers, trying to wave the something for her to see. Looking at the recognition on her face, I said, "Well, guess I don't need to tell you, I found your Ring. Or took it." Hmm, is it just me, or is the look on Ikegai's face telling me he wants the ring too? Boy, sentimental value, yeah right. This ring must be worth a million.  
  
(M. Quavers: For those people who just can't accept it, TO-BE-CONTINUED! Ah- ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!) 


	10. Letsh Get Ready To Rumble!

Chapter 10: Letsh Get Ready ta RRRUMBLE!  
  
Disclaimer: I disclaim FY. Questions?  
  
A/n: And let me remind you of the Nuriko thing, ok? Please don't flame me 'cause of that (though no-one's done it yet, anyway). I know that'll be something like OOC or something; I know very well what Nuriko's real gender is. But when I refer to him as "her", it's just abstractly.  
  
Previously... (Tasuki's POV)  
  
"Uh, Akire, you listening?" I looked at her, and I see the corner of her mouth slowly curving into a frown. She's probably thinkin', nitwit, I'm numb, not deaf. "uh, right, okay," I stuttered, clutching the Thing, "I know I've been a jerk for some time now, and I ain't sayin' I take it back, but there is one thing I wanna say sorry for." I wiggled my fingers, trying to wave the something for her to see. Looking at the recognition on her face, I said, "Well, guess I don't need to tell you, I found your Ring. Or took it." Hmm, is it just me, or is the look on Ikegai's face telling me he wants the ring too? Boy, sentimental value, yeah right. This ring must be worth a million.  
  
"Hey, you want it? I don't need it," I teasingly said to Ikegai. At the corner of my eye, I see this strange, panicky look on Akire's face. I was gettin' ready to toss it to her, when the Icky guys jumped me! Heh, can't pry my hand open now, eh? Such weak fingers.  
  
"If you can't get it, CUT THE HAND OFF!" Ikegai screamed. Load of help that'll do, he won't even try to join his "siblings".  
  
F-fingers're slippin'! Gotta do somethin' fast before they get – too late. The Ikegai clone jumps in glee, wavin' the sapphire ring in the air. Too bad for him, as I mustered all my strength and kicked the ring free from his grip (not easy with your legs tied together).  
  
Ohh, boy. Time seemed to freeze, as the ring got tossed way into the air, and slowly spun down to the ground. Bumping off the nearest Ikegai to me, I settled for the only way I could catch the thing: my big, fat mouth. Akire must really be in tears now.  
  
"- pfft! – Akire, CATCH!" Turns out, this maybe the last thing I'll ever say, as I spat the ring out of my mouth towards Akire, and losing my balance at the same time. Now, my stupid clumsiness has tossed me into the burnin' hole. Not the way I'd expected to die. This, really, sucks...  
  
...and then there was light...  
  
Akire's POV  
  
I can't move. I'm at the mercy of my most hated enemy. And am about to get, ugh, MARRIED to him. And I'm about to cause the destruction of a (not so much) innocent life. These things run over and over my head as Ikegai carries me off to goodness-knows-what. Far ahead, I see Tasuki, dripping with blood, forced to walk with a manacle fastened to his hands. Stupid, stupid! Why did I let my guard down? Now Ikegai has my ring, and all is lost, all is lost.  
  
Ikegai finally lays me down sideways on a large chamber-like cave. In the middle of the cave is this great, dark hole. After awhile, the Ikegai duplicates walk in with Tasuki. They tie his feet up now, too, and then push him to the ground.  
  
Now, Ikegai lights this torch. What, is he going to burn Tasuki like some Middle-Ages witch? Then, the psycho tosses the torch into the pit, which immediately blazes with fire. Tasuki, I know you can't hear me, but I am so sorry. I let you down, I let everybody else down. Guess I won't be around much longer to receive the sanction the Council plans to give me.  
  
Ikegai tells Tasuki something, and then orders his slaves to pull the latter to his feet. Tasuki mentions something to him, and I see Ikegai's face contort with rage. Good old Tasuki, but all will be over soon enough.  
  
Then, Tasuki fingers something in his belt and says, "Uh, Akire, you listening?" Nitwit, I'm numb, not deaf, I thought, as I tried to frown. Then he says this entire crock about being sorry and being a jerk. Too late for that. Anyway, you're excused. And then, he turns around and wiggles something shiny between his fingers and – oh, good heaven. MY RING! HE HAS MY RING! "Well, guess I don't need to tell you I found your ring. Or took it," he says. Oh, Tasuki, you insufferable, reliable blowhard! But, then, how on earth is he going to give it to me?  
  
Oh, oh, no. The Ikegais are going for the ring. Tasuki, throw it, throw it! Too late! Ikegai has it. Ikegai – wait! Tasuki jumps up and kicks the ring free, and then pushes away one of the Ikegais and, and SWALLOWS MY RING! He, he's getting all his filthy saliva on my ring! Hope he doesn't have rabies.  
  
"Akire, catch!" he shouts, spitting the ring towards me. It lands mercifully near my hands. Quick, girl, move it! Tasuki's falling; HE'S FALLING INTO THE PIT! Just a little more, got it! It takes all my strength to resist the potion and hold the ring tight. Please, oh, please and, yes! I feel the ring's power pushing the potion back! It's working! The ring's working...  
  
- - - - - - - -  
  
A flash of light ensues from the ring, as Akire disintegrates from view and blinds Ikegai and his clones. She closes her eyes, and focuses all her energy to direct the ring's power. Sure enough, she materializes inside the pit, seconds before the flames lick Tasuki, who's got his eyes shut. No time for words, she grabs his hand quickly, and transports them outside.  
  
Meanwhile, back in Hotohori's palace, Nuriko's showing the others the letter Akire left behind. "She didn't even ask for help," Nuriko remarked. Hotohori, after reading the letter, said, "Her bearing seems so, regal. She doesn't fit the position of Chief of the Guard in her country." Chichiri nodded, and turned around to say something to Tasuki, who or course wasn't there. "Hmm, I never did notice when Tasuki left today," he said.  
  
Suddenly, right in the middle of Akire's room, a small orb of light appeared, then, in a flash, it expanded, and Akire and Tasuki's silhouettes were seen. Shielding their eyes, they listened to someone say, "No, no! We're being drawn back!" Akire's voice echoed strangely, as if from afar, and then Tasuki spoke, his silhouette pointing towards the bunch, "H-hey, hey look! It's them! HEY, NEED HELP HEEEEEEEEREE--!" The gateway of light imploded, and the images were gone.  
  
Silence followed. A long, awkward silence. Everyone just tried to absorb what they've just seen, but none seemed to fathom it. Then, Chichiri broke the hush. "I can lead us to the chi trail, no da," he murmured. Tamahome smacked his forehead and said, "THANK YOU for bringing that up!"  
  
- - - - - - - -  
  
Akire and Tasuki materialized back inside the cavern. "Ikegai blocked the gateway with his black magic! It's like hitting a brick wall," Akire said, clutching her head. Tasuki, rubbing his forehead, frowned and said, "Well, at least I already knew he has powers. But what's the deal with YOU?" Not stopping to ponder his question, she hushed him and said, "No time, we have to figure out how to get away from here!"  
  
Ikegai materialized, sweating and breathing hard, with only two Ikegais left. "I had to terminate my slaves for extra power, but don't ever think of trying that again, because the strain will just kill us both! What say we settle this the old fashioned, violent way?" Akire stood still, murmuring something under her breath with eyes closed, as if thinking. Finally, she said, "A-alright, fine. Fine."  
  
Tasuki grabbed her arm and said, "You CRAZY? I don't have my tessen, you don't have your sword, and you can't use your powers which, may I remind you, you haven't spoken about!" Akire, blood boiling again, replied, "Just, shut up. Shut up." (To all Pinoys: remember Dilangalen?) Tasuki tightened his grip, then finally let go. "We're not done here," he said, "if we survive this, we're gonna havta have a little chat."  
  
"Cut the chatter!" Ikegai said, charging at them with his clones. Akire, assuming that he's also a bit wiped out from the gateway-block, lost no time in meeting him halfway. Tasuki blinked in surprise, and then realized that the other two were going for him! "H-hey! No fair! You left me with the other two, OWW!" he said, as he got whacked on the jaw. Rubbing his bruise, he said, "'Least I ain't tied up no more." Grabbing a fistful of dust, he tossed it onto the Icky clones' faces, and alternately kicked them on the stomach. While they recovered their strength, Tasuki smiled maliciously and, well, kicked them between the legs. Again. "Take that again, you, you, damn! Can't even think of a proper insult. Damn you two to HELL!" Unfortunately, one of the clones tackled him, sending him to the ground.  
  
Akire, meanwhile, is barely gaining an advantage. Ikegai kept being distracted by Tasuki's fight, but his hits come really close, too. Akire aimed at his throat, but her move was blocked, causing her to fall back. "Honestly, Akire, we're too evenly matched in hand-to-hand combat, so let me just do a little bit of cheating," Ikegai said, stepping back, concentrating, and letting off a blast of energy.  
  
Tasuki's in the process of strangling one Ikegai, when the other one charged at him. Thinking quickly, he held the subdued one by the neck, and threw him at the other one. Slowly, Tasuki sat on the ground, very much exhausted. "J-just, whew, just gimme a-a, breather," he muttered, right before the wave of energy from Ikegai seared his neck. "Hey, I told you to gimme a breather! You baddies are all the same!" he shouted, taking cover. Akire, being much too near Ikegai, didn't have time to get out of the way, and got blasted to the wall of the cave.  
  
Blacking out for awhile, Akire woke up and saw that the "original" Ikegai disappeared, and in his place were a whole army Ikegais! "Eww! More Icky- guys! Hehe, get it? Icky-guys? You know what I mean," Tasuki said, chuckling nervously.  
  
"Corny, really," Akire remarked, feeling her ribs and pushing herself from the cavern wall. A wall of Ikegais surrounded them, and as they tried to break free, either skill or sheer numbers (the sheer numbers I believe) prevented them. They were pushed back to a tight space, as the Ikegais spoke in unison, "MY AKIRE, AS YOU MAY HAVE REALIZED, AN ARMY IS BETTER THAN ONE, AND SO I USED ALL MY POWER TO ENFORCE MY VICTORY!"  
  
"Now that is evil-guy corny," Tasuki pointed out.  
  
"If you stop it with the corniness, I will think about not shutting you up," Akire replied.  
  
Clammy, bony hands (right out of old zombie movies) clawed at them as their space grew tighter and tighter, until they were against each other's backs. Akire (probably thinking they're perverts rather than mindless automaton- like clones) continually slapped away the hands, to Tasuki's utter annoyance. "What, you think they were reaching for your, OW!" A swift slap stops him from finishing the sentence.  
  
"Only a matter of time," Akire muttered. "Y'know, countin' down the minutes to destruction ain't really inspirational," Tasuki said, still rubbing the slap mark. "No, no, I don't mean that. Okay, why don't you just hold your hands out in front, and when I tell you to, recite your incantation?" Tasuki, puzzled, said, "I'll do it, but I don't see the point." Akire closed her eyes, and then shouted, "NOW!"  
  
"LEKKA SHIEN! WHOAH!"  
  
Instantly, Tasuki's tessen materialized between his hands, and the minute he uttered the words, searing flames burst forward, cutting a path for them. Tasuki was so surprised he almost dropped the tessen. "I thought you still can't, your powers, how?" Akire beamed widely and replied, "Your friends dropped by to lend us a hand. I was 'talking' to Chichiri awhile ago, when he tracked us down"  
  
"Heh, NOW WE'RE TALKIN'!" Tasuki yelled in delight, cutting another path for them after kissing the tessen. Then, one section of the Ikegais flew into the air, courtesy of Nuriko. "Hey, girl, how's your date?" Nuriko hollered, smashing the jaw of an Ikegai who tried to punch her. "Him so NOT my date," Akire hollered back, after ducking a flying kick from an Ikegai. "Ikegai or Tasuki?" Nuriko giggled.  
  
Chichiri literally popped up in the middle of the fray in midair and landed on a clone. "You all know they're gonna reconstruct themselves, right?" he pointed out. Everyone groaned, watching the burnt, smashed, bruised, slashed, blasted, bleeding, weeping and cowering Ikegais melt, turn to living putty, and reconstruct one whole Ikegai. Smiling, he let out another blast of energy and created a fresh wave of clones.  
  
Seeing the energy shockwave, Akire grabbed the nearest person to her, in other words, Nuriko, and braced herself. The others, of course, didn't know what's going to happen, and got tossed around. Tasuki, anticipating the blast, grabbed Chiriko by the collar and ducked behind a rock. Mitsukake took cover beside him, while Chichiri kept Tamahome and Miaka (don't really know why she's here, strictly out of compliance) inside a temporary force field (can he really do that? It's been too long, too long, since I last watched FY!).  
  
Watching the creation of another bunch o' Ikegais, Akire figured out a plan to defeat him. "Guys, can y'all beat the pulp out of these dudes like you did earlier?" she said. "I still don't see the point," Tasuki said, "they're just gonna regroup and do that disgusting thing and then do the energy blast thing, and we'll be doin' all these things all over again." Akire rubbed her temples and just let the statement slide. "If you don't want to get this over with, fine by me. We can always fight and fight them till we're exhausted and he kills us all." Tasuki rolled his eyes and said, "Alright, alright already. Don't be such a nag."  
  
He stopped to ponder for a moment, and then groaned. "That means we're the distraction! I don't wanna be the distraction! I'm the leader of the Mt. Leikaku bandits for cryin' out loud! I'm too important to be a distraction!" Akire shook her head and muttered, "Not anymore, from what I heard." Then, grabbing him by the neck, she pushed him from his hiding place. "C'mon, Napoleon Bonaparte, kiss some butt."  
  
Like a reluctant pupil asked to recite in front of the class, he dragged himself into view (Ikegai's view, that is), and hissed, "C'mon, you guys, back me up here!" Nuriko grinned maliciously and said, "Oh, no, I like my view right here much better thank you." A while of silence ensued, and then Nuriko said, "Fine, fine."  
  
She lifted up the rock where Tasuki hid awhile ago, and tossed it at the group of clones. "Nyeh, nyeh!" they said in unison, sticking out their tongues as they stepped away from the target zone. "NYEH, NYEH!" Tasuki said, as he summoned his fire power and blasted them to smithereens. Unfortunately, he didn't see another bunch of them jump away, and land on him all together like some quarterback in a football game. "Leggo o' me! Leggo o' me! Hey! You idiots! Let me goooo!" Tasuki screamed, long after Nuriko pulled away the clones and broke their arms in the process. "Don't be such a bay-bee!" Nuriko said.  
  
"Why won't you all attack me at once? Are you all intimidated by my forces?" One of the Ikegais said. Tamahome jeered, "You geezer, not even that Seiryuu guy, Nak, says that! Least I don't remember him saying that." And with that line over and done with, (amazing what a hurt pride can do) they attack! Again!  
  
Akire, meanwhile, sneaks as far behind them as possible, partly to watch the plan unfold, and largely because she's tired and doesn't want to join the fray any time soon. Unfortunately though, a large projectile in the form of Tasuki sails oh so ungracefully through the air and lands on her back.  
  
"Great, I only loose half a gallon o' my blood and got kicked around for an hour, and I already can't think straight," he said, as he dusted himself off and made 3 unsuccessful attempts to stand properly. "Don't you agree, Nuriko?" he continued, absolutely NOT thinking straight. "I'm not Nuriko, I'm, I'm uh, your mother telling you to give it a rest for a minute," Akire said, sitting the poor creature down and patting his head. "Yes ma'am," Tasuki said a whimsical smile forming on his face, right before dozing off. Akire rolled her eyes and went right back to watching the fight.  
  
Sure enough, the thing she's waiting for has arrived. The Ikegai army dime- a-dozen began "reforming" again, and tendrils of energy began appearing in the now half-formed body of Ikegai. Bracing herself, Nuriko said, "There's gonna be another energy blast again, hope you know what you're doing Akire, Akire? What on earth are you doing?"  
  
Akire ran as fast as she could towards Ikegai who's almost ready to let off another energy blast to form his army anew. "I'm placing my life and the lives of the others on a gamble," she muttered to herself, "but if there's one way of stopping Ikegai, it's to make him lose his powers. Hopefully, my theory works."  
  
Ikegai laughed. "And my love runs towards me willingly! Have I finally made you surrender to my charms?" Akire frowned and said, "Eww, Ikegai, of course not. But I am gonna do something very, very else." In a split second, she sees the energy shockwave coming towards her. She grits her teeth, concentrates on her ring, drawing on what little power his left in them, and leaps right into the storm!  
  
The blast is cut short, and then a tremendous implosion ensues. Everyone else, who were preparing for the onslaught, were surprised to see Ikegai's body convulsing violently, his eyes blank. "But, but where's Akire?" Miaka murmured. They looked around, trying to spot her, and instead made another observation. Chichiri said, "Tasuki's gone too."  
  
Tasuki's POV  
  
What IS this place? Okay, calm down, just think, what was the last thing you did? Okay, I remember dozing off, being really, really exhausted. I remember wakin' up to see Akire totally lose her mind, runnin' towards that Ikegai fella, who's about to blast everything again. I remember ignorin' my pain, and runnin' towards her to pull her back. Instead, I see a blinding light, and, well, heck! Here I am.  
  
Weird. I don't feel pain. I don't feel, period. I don't think I'm breathin', either! Oh, my achin' heart. I'm DEAD!  
  
"No, you aren't. Dum-dum." I whirled around (before I could slap myself awake from this nightmare) and I see Akire, only she ain't wearin' the same outfit she did earlier. What, she had time to change? Uh, any divine forces listenin' to me? I'd rather wake up any minute now, dudes. Please. I mean, she even hears me think!  
  
She holds out her hand to me. Oh, no, no, no, lady. I'm too weirded out to let YOU of all people come near me. I said, "No closer, Akire. I don' wanna turn into anythin' I'm gonna regret later." I tried to reach for my tessen, but well, it just AIN'T WITH ME! "Oh, the humanity!" I shrieked, sinking to my knees and shakin' my fists to the sky. "Anythin' but the tessen! ANYTHIN' BUT MY TESSEN!"  
  
"Life has lost its meanin'! I can't go on! Go on without me! Leave me to die in this stinkin' place! I can't find my 'baby'! Where's my TESSEN?!" I moaned, and I moaned and I ain't leavin' this place till someone gives back my tessen and ends this cruel joke. "This is the second time! SECOND TIME!"  
  
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Akire roll her eyes and say, "Shakespear you aren't. Stop moping over your tessen, kiddo, and listen to me for a moment."  
  
I tried to slap myself awake, but it ain't no use. Okay, maybe I wanna listen for a moment. "I wan' my tessen baaaack! Gimme my tessen back!" Akire frowned, and then suddenly pinched my ear!  
  
"OW! OW! OW! HEY WATCH THE EARRINGS, WOMAN!" Well, so much for the not feeling anything part.  
  
"We're inside Ikegai's brain, dummy. CAN YOU COMPREHEND THAT? WE'RE INSIDE HIS STUPID MIND! WE'RE IN HIS PLANE OF UNCONSCIOUSNESS! DO I HAVE TO SCREAM FOR YOU TO HEAR ME?" She said, hollering REALLY loud into my ear. It kinda took a little bit more for everything to actually sink in.  
  
I rubbed my ear and said, "So, we're not really here, is that what you're saying? This's all in our heads?" Akire shook her head. "We're really here, body and soul. But we're not limited to our earthly prowess any longer. That's why your tessen isn't with you; you have powers of your own as long as you and I are here. That's also why you don't have your wounds anymore. But if we're sent back to our original state, everything'll be back to normal, as if nothing had happened."  
  
"And you figured this out on your own?" I asked. "I know, isn't it brilliant?" she replied. This time, it was my turn to roll my eyes. Her ego is just unbelievable!  
  
I looked carefully around the place and saw that it just ain't like the real world. I mean, how many places have got green rocks an' purple trees? "Far out," I murmured. Akire said, "Believe me, I won't be surprised if I see my face etched on a rock here somewhere."  
  
"Now what?" I said. I was kinda eager to look around, but I knew there was some serious butt-kicking to be done here first. She grabbed my hand and dragged me towards a hill. "We look for Ikegai. Duh."  
  
"No need. I'm here, princess," said Ikegai, as he appeared in front of them. "Though you both have powers here, this is MY mind, and therefore I am the master." Akire picked up a small pebble and said, "That remains to be seen." With that, she threw the pebble astonishingly hard at Ikegai. He deflected it, but saw Akire leap into the air. No taglines, no funny comments, just ready to rumble.  
  
"H-hey! HEY! Gimme a piece of the action here!" I hollered. I ran towards them, but stopped short and saw something very, very depressing instead from afar. "Is it just me, or is this place starting to, disintegrate?"  
  
(M. Quavers: The word "whacked" is dedicated again to the 24th Altruist, a good friend of mine. The rest of the fic is dedicated to Dylan Michaels and my other friends, who went out of their way and took their precious time to read and review my work.) 


	11. All In the Head

**_Chapter 11: All in the Head_**

**Disclaimer: Fushigi. Not mine. Okay?**

**a/n: for those of you confused on the shifting POV thing, to make it easier for you, Akire doesn't have her own POV in this chapter, so if someone talks in first person, that would be Tasuki. The other parts would just be narratives. And, I know, guns weren't invented back then, so it's kinda weird to use the phrase "son-of-a-gun", but it sounds so cool I had to include it. It's so...Tasuki-like :)**

Tasuki's POV

Okay, dude, just, just recap what happened for the past hour. We were fighting Ikegai and his clones, and then Akire and I are pulled into Ikegai's mind. So now, they're fightin' tooth and nail, and I see this white light eating its way towards us from afar. Why can't I have a normal day? Just one measly day, that's all I'm askin'!

Akire seems to be doin' okay on her own, so I gotta leave and check out what's happenin' somewhere else. Hate to leave her with a maniac like that, but I got this really sinkin' feelin' about that white mass movin' towards us.

Wonder if I can run faster than I can in the real world. Boy, if I run really fast over there, how fast am I now? WHOAH! I barely put my foot forward and I'm already here, starin' directly at the creepy, white mass swallowin' everythin' in its path. Tendrils o' light snaked through the ground.

How do I stop it? Akire said I didn't need my tessen to summon fire anymore. Should I burn this thing? I look at my hand, and I see this freaky glow comin' from it. "This is so messed up!" I yelled. I really, really wanna get out of this nightmare. I won't stop whinin' till I –AAARRRRGH!

Way to go, kid, you just got yourself swallowed by the damn white thing, an' now, you're gonna be torn apart by whatever it is that's got you. "I'M NOT GOIN' DOWN WITHOUT A FIGHT, Y'HEAR!" With that, I let all hell break loose on the white sucker and started burnin', burnin', burnin' what I see (or don't see).

How, how long have I been, been fightin' this thing? It's gettin' hard, hard to, to breathe. Out of the corner of my blurry eye, I see the jets of flame comin' from my hand fade, till I ain't lettin' out any more heat. Just when I thought this was really the end, I hear voices. Voices. Shouting. Shouting my name. First, the voices seem distant, echoing like they came from some faraway mountain. Then, the voices grew louder, till it seemed like they were shoutin' at my ear. Wait. There's a different chorus of voices, aw, forget it. Passing out now, I guess. This sucks. I'm gonna faint again! I-DON'T-WANT-TO...

...to...

...faint? Well, got my wish. I didn't faint. I just suddenly found myself lyin' on the cavern floor in the real world. Where's everybody?

"BOO!"

"YAAAAAARRRGH!"

"Made you look!"

Sheesh. Just when I thought I was gonna get some peace, Nuriko pops into view and startles me. He pinches my nose and says, "Are you really alive? That's too bad! Chichiri shouldn't have tried to save you when we saw your limp, icy body slowly reappearing inches from death!"

"Well, Ib sho showy ta tisaboint ya," I muttered, as I spat on his hand. Heh, needless to say he let go of my nose pretty quick.

"EWW! Rabies! I don't wanna end up like that big, bad orange wolf!" he said, wipin' his hand on my sleeve. "You know," he said, "when that implosion happened and you two disappeared, we had this crazy thought you got trapped inside Ikegai, so we kept shouting like crazy right before you reappeared." Shouting? So it was THEM that I heard back there.

I said, "I guess we have to wait for Akire to come back, since I really didn't know how I was sent there in the first place." Tama-baka showed his face and said, "Ooh, someone's waitin' for a girl!" I lost no time in spittin' on his face, too, the doof. He wiped it off and hissed, "I'm gonna get your hidden wine reserve for this, I swear!"

I grinned as wide as I can ('cause I know he ain't never gonna find it), and sat up, only to cringe in pain again. I looked at my hands and saw dried blood, my blood, on them. "Aww, crud!" I said, remembering what Akire said about my body returning to its normal state when I'm sent back to reality.

I was gonna call Mitsukake to check my wounds, when I felt this almighty wallop on my back! All the wind got knocked outta me, and I crouched down on the ground, gasping. "IKEGAI! LOOK AT IKEGAI!" Chichiri shouted. I whirled around to see Ikegai's limp body (well, ain't limp any more, anyway) thrash around, his mouth frothin' like some crazy horse. It, or he, or, aw heck, Ikegai started fightin' and boxin' the air. Boy, wonder what's goin' on back there inside his head. Yeah,

Akire, give him hell!

Inside Ikegai's mind (duh...)

Akire leaped away as Ikegai's arm slashed through the air. She nimbly landed on a nearby hill and saw Tasuki disappear in the blink of an eye. "TASUKI, DON'T!" she shouted, but he was out of earshot. Thinking the worst, she averted her eyes from the ground (which had a burnt trail, thanks to Tasuki traveling at the speed of thought) and finally saw the white mass enveloping everything it comes across. "And Tasuki ran off to face certain doom. Poor idiot!"

Unfortunately, Ikegai took advantage of the momentary distraction and immediately kicked her on the stomach. This being fought inside his psyche, his and everyone else's powers and abilities are increased dramatically, hence sending Akire crashing through a wall of solid rock (And no, I do not know how to enter someone's mind, so don't ask. And don't try it at home, either).

Cringing in pain, Akire grasped a part of the shattered rock and tried standing, pulling herself upright. "Like I have said before, I have the upper hand. I am so surprised that of all the sensible people I have known, you were a fool enough to try and stop me here," Ikegai said, taking his sweet time, as he walked over to where she was standing.

Her teeth clenched and body shaking from the strain, she managed to stand and said, "And like I said, it remains to be seen." Ikegai frowned, and was about to knock her out but Akire gripped the rock with all her might, and threw it as hard as she could at Ikegai. This time, it was HIS turn to go hurtling away, and with no obstructions to stop him, he went crashing down into the ground, blasting away a portion of it. He lay still in the center of the still smoking crater, seemingly unconscious.

Akire's legs buckled under the strain, and she collapsed, breathing heavily. Spotting Ikegai motionless, she sighed. "It looks like the worst is over," she remarked, as she rested for awhile, and then managed to hobble over to the crater. "Well, you bloody devil, you gave us quite a run for our money there. But now that you're 'unconscious', your mind is now mine to command. Any minute now, I'll be given control over you, so I can seal off your powers and we can blow this joint. Of course, we'll be sent back to Amria, with you in chains. Or a pine box. Just kidding."

A precious few seconds passed, and Akire's brow furrowed with worry. "Odd," she thought, "Our surroundings should've been altered by now. I should've been able to take control and get out of here by now. Unless..." she glanced at the center of the crater, and sure enough, Ikegai was gone. "Still conscious. Probably going to ambush me. When will this ever...stop...?" Her words grew to a faint whisper. In fact, no words were needed to express the sudden shock and fear she felt, as she stared directly into the gluttonous creeping tendrils of the white mass. (...and the Pulitzer goes to...)

Back to Tasuki

"DO something!" Nuriko shouted at me, as I wearily evaded Ikegai's advances. "He, he probably thinks I'm Akire. Maybe whatever happens to him inside his head, that's what's he doin'...waitaminute! Why DO I have to DO anything?" Nuriko shrugged. "Because you're the only one 'round here who's been in his loco brain?"

I wanted to point out that it wasn't an excuse, when Ikegai stopped short right in front of me, then suddenly ricocheted off! "WHAT IN HELL?!" I shouted, as he landed forcefully into the rocky cavern floor, creatin' a crater 'round him. I scratched my head and said, "Weird. It's like he got slammed with a big boulder or sumthin', sumthin' nasty."

As if that ain't the end of my problems, a pebble dropped from above and hit my head. "Owwwwwch! Uhhhh-ooooh," I muttered out loud, as I looked up to see this crack snaking its way across the cavern ceiling, joined by a sickening, rumbling sound. Boy, Ikegai landed with so much force, he's gonna bring down this cave with him!

We held our breath, stood really still and made no sound, as the rumbling sound mercifully grew quieter, and the crack stopped growing larger. "Whew! We better hightail our butts outta here," Tamahome whispered. We were about to do just that, when Miaka spotted Ikegai and shouted, "HEY! What do we do with him? He's twitching again!" No 'ffense to her, but now the crack just went on cracklin' and everythin' started to rumble again. This time, ain't no puny pebbles tumblin' down. We're talkin' about the whole...damnable...roof.

"EVERYBODY OUT, NOW!" Hotohori shouted. Dude, no need to tell me twice. "Last one out's a rotten corpse!" I said gleefully. I entered the dozens of tunnels leading away from this stinkin' place, and just when I was about to sprint away to freedom, I suddenly realized, "HEY! HEEEEY! IKEGAI! IF HE DIES, AKIRE DIES!"

Nuriko grabbed me by the neck and knocked on my skull. "Hello! Nice of you to bring that up just now! Anyway, we're trying to restrain Ikegai so we'd be able to get him out, but it's no use! It's as if he really doesn't want to go!" I frowned, nodding quickly, and said, "Alright already! Now put me down!" Nuriko shrugged, then let go. I coughed, breathing in the dust that the tremors are stirrin' up. "B-bad, enough t-that I've lost a lot o' blood, then you d-do this to m-me, you damn drag queen!" I sputtered in between coughs.

We ran back to where Ikegai was (dodging some big pieces of rock that broke off from the cavern) and saw him, or his body anyway, wriggling like a snake, kicking everyone who tries to get closer to him. "Akire isn't here yet," I kept on muttering, my eyes darting from the ceiling to Ikegai. I was really gonna ask if there's any other way to drag that whacko to the exit, I mean, with Nuriko's strength, and all our powers, there's gotta be a way.

"Nuriko, you're the strong one, restrain him!" I yelled ducking as chunks and chunks of rock fell down. Already, a big hunk's half-blocked the exit, and fissures are startin' to crack open beneath our feet. I'm gonna be buried alive. Perfect. Saves funeral costs. I whipped out my tessen and blasted away a particularly large boulder. Unfortunately, it exploded to a million pieces that ricocheted into everyone else's direction, much to their annoyance.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Nuriko grabbing the writhing Ikegai by the arms, but he just can't. "Stay still you uncontrollable worm!" she screamed. "I don't know why, not even my magic can do anything. For someone who isn't 'conscious', he sure is strong!" Chichiri remarked. Boo, freakin' hoo. This guy's gonna take us all to the grave.

Where is Akire? Of course, still inside that nutso's head. The tunnel's all blocked now. Everything's goin' darker already. I kept on pourin' out fire power, but we're all dead if we don't do somethin' real soon. Too bad Akire's still inside his head, she's gonna miss all this life-threatenin' action. Wait a minute.

"Ch-chichiri! CHICHIRI!" Man, the air's so thick with, with dust we're all chokin' in it. Either that, or the fallin' rocks are blockin' up the air in here.

"I'm here! I can get us all out of here, except Ikegai! He's just resisting so much!" Chichiri yelled back.

"I need you to send the others back, then send ME back into Ikegai's mind!" I said. Chichiri replied, "I'll try, Tasuki. But if something bad happens to your physical body, you're gonna know. Don't stay in there too long." With that, he does that magic mumbo-whatsis of his. First, he got everyone else out of this hell-hole, and then it was just him, me and Icky (bet they won't be all too happy about being suddenly whisked away). And don't forget the ever-collapsing cavern.

Chichiri hollered, "Okay, Tasuki, I need you to shield us from the rocks while I do the transfer!" I grabbed my handy-dandy tessen and said, "No problemo." Yeah, right. This HUGE rock fell right in front of me, and I tripped tryin' to avoid it. Now, another rock fell down and pinned my leg! Great. And the fan got knocked out of my hand, too!

Biting my lip from the pain, I tried and reached for my tessen, but it's too far! "I'm...beginning...to, to complete the...transfer!" Chichiri said through the strain. No need to tell me, pal, I'm blackin' out. What's worse, I see more rocks fallin' in Chichiri's direction, and I really, really don't wanna know what happens if my brain got stuck between my body and Ikegai's. If-I-could-just-reach-

-that-

-TESSEN! "LEKka Shien!" As I see the fire blast away the rock, as I see Chichiri complete the transfer and getting plunked on the head with a rock afterwards, as I see everything goin' darker and darker inside the cave, and the air getting' hotter and my breathin' getting' shorter and shorter, I feel myself bein' pulled into Ikegai's mind again.

Akire's eyes widened as she stared into the white void. At that same instant, Tasuki's astral form materialized some distance away. "Oh, no. AKIRE, MOVE! MOVE!" Tasuki yelled, but Akire was rooted to the spot. He was about to speed to her rescue, when Ikegai jumped out from a bush and head locked him. "If I can't have her, NO ONE WILL!" Ikegai cackled, as he bashed Tasuki's head on a rock.

Tasuki grunted, saying, "Bad enough I'm injured in the physical world, I get bloody here too! By the same guy! On the same day! Or night!" With that, he gritted his teeth and kicked Ikegai on the knees. Howling with pain, Ikegai failed to stop Tasuki from rushing to help Akire at hyper-speed.

He raced faster than a speeding bullet, eh, I mean, he raced towards Akire and carried her away nanoseconds before she was enveloped in the thing. Her mind registering the events a few seconds slower, it was only this time that she shrieked in his ear.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEKK!"

"AAOOOWWCH!" Tasuki let her down with a thud, before vigorously rubbing his ear. "Why'd you have to do that, woman!"

Akire pouted, then said, "Aww, I hurt the wittle fang boy! His wittle ear is hurting! Let your big sister Akire give it a kiss!" Tasuki grimaced and waved his hands wildly at her. "Getcher cooties off me! Gross! Disgusting! Don't want your saliva on my ear!"

Akire laughed, and then hugged him tight. Tasuki was about to get that uncomfortable, awkward feeling again, when Akire suddenly pinched his ear. "What took you so long, you bonehead! I was getting massacred in here!" Tasuki stuck out his tongue and said, "Well, excuse me, but I can very well see with my own two peepers that you're still alive and kickin'!"

And that's when he felt that burning sensation in his stomach. That feeling grew more intense by the second, and spread all over his body. Akire gasped, and pointed at him. "What? What?" he badgered, his throat growing dry. "Look at your hands!" she said, a look of shock on her face. He held his hands out for him to see, and stared at them with disbelief. "I-I'm, f-fading! I CAN SEE THE DAMN GROUND THROUGH MY HANDS!"

"And it's just as well. Your physical body's going through some kind of torment. I know, I feel it too," Ikegai said. "Nobody's talking to you!" Akire snapped, before noticing that Ikegai's image, too, is fading. "I'm the only one who isn't fading, since my physical body's not in the real world, but if Ikegai dies, he's taking us all down with him," Akire said.

"ARRRGGHH!" Tasuki clenched his teeth; every inch of his body feels as if it was burning. Akire immediately rushed to his side. She murmured, "C'mon, pal, you're dying! Let's just get out of here and-"

"-no! You're not backing out on this! Look at him! He's as weak as I am! Now's your chance! Look, Akire, while he's weak, wrap this up quick, and then get us both the hell outta here, okay?" Akire growled in frustration, and then decided to take on Ikegai.

She paused in front of his shaking figure. "Well, looks like I'm winning, but I really didn't want things to end this way, even though you drive me nuts. Sorry." She raised her fist to deliver the final blow, but it immediately fell like a stone back at her side. "My, my head, feels like its...burning!" she said, clutching her head. It didn't take long before she joined Tasuki and crouched down on the ground in agony. Ikegai let out a raspy, weak laugh.

"I, I told y-you, that if I c-can't have you, n-no one will! Normally, m-my body and mind w-will fight for its life, b-but at this instance, I'm s-surrendering to the external forces that are killing me! If I die, y-you all die with me! Even n-now, some crushing force is d-driving the life out of me t-twice as f-fast! And you are a-all s-so weak, y-you can't transport out o-of h-here!" he said, shaking violently.

Tasuki smiled, the smile of a man sentenced to death, a man with nothing to loose. "R-really n-now? I guess, y-you crazy s-son o-of a g-gun, that if we're all g-gonna die, we m-might as well fight it out!" he said, standing up despite the pain. Akire seemingly gave up hope and lay motionless on the ground, groaning.

He stepped closer to Ikegai, who too stands at the ready. He raised his hand, focusing his remaining energy into releasing probably the last bursts of flame he'll ever see. "Y-you and I b-both know t-that your energy's almost spent," Ikegai remarked. "I don't c-care, damn y-you," Tasuki said, and was about to torch Ikegai when he noticed his hand. "My hand, it's...not fading! It's gone back to normal!"

Ikegai took advantage of this delay and rushed at him. Tasuki raised his hand in defense, but it seemed too late, if not for Akire's hand that suddenly darted out of her side and grabbed Tasuki's foot. It sent him crashing down, thus saving him for whatever attack Ikegai tried to pull off.

"Sorry," she said with all the strength she could muster, "b-but looks like you've still got your life ahead of you, while I'm decaying along with Ikegai's bodily functions. I'm sending you back to the real world. Bye, pal, it's been real. Don't worry, I bet you're in good hands." Before he could object, she placed her hand on his brow, channeling her ring's power. It didn't take long for the transfer to begin. But is Tasuki gonna take this sitting down? No, indeed!

The transfer was almost done, when Ikegai lunged at Akire from behind. Spotting him, Tasuki immediately waved Akire's hand away, and sent a burst of flame at Ikegai's direction. But at that instant, time seemed to freeze, and all that could be heard was Akire's high-pitched scream. For with all the commotion, all three seemed to forget about the enigmatic white mass of disintegrating nothingness, and for their carelessness, they are being engulfed within its burning void. Akire's scream reverberated all the while, as it seemed to be the very last sound all three of them will hear...


	12. Tasuki in Wonderland?

Chapter 11: Tasuki in Wonderland?

"EEEEYAAAAAAAHHHH!"

A heart-rending screech ripped through the chilling silence. The voice belonged to Akire, and she shut her eyes and gritted her teeth, anticipating the burning, killing touch of the white void. But instead of disintegrating, she found herself standing inside a sapphire courtroom, her voice faintly echoing. "Heavens above!" she exclaimed, not quite recovered from the shock. She leaned against a wall of the courtroom and slowly sat down, breathing heavily.

She scanned the whole room, which was empty, except for a dark figure lying rigid on the floor. As light from the ceiling fell upon him, Akire recognized him as Tasuki. "Hey, hey redhead, are you okay?" she whispered. Silence ensued. Worried, she tried shaking him awake, but immediately withdrew her hands and grimaced. "Ugh, so, so cold! C-cold?" An ugly thought dawned on her. "Oh, oh, no! You can't be dead!" she exclaimed. "C'mon, buddy, wake up!" She checked his pulse, and to her utter dismay, found none. Unable to take it any longer, she punched the ground repeatedly, sobbing. "W-why? WHY! WHY DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING TO ME? ANSWER ME!"

"Because, child, that's the way everything works. But this is not the end of everything for you, it might as well be the beginning, hopefully," a man said, stepping out of the shadows. Akire recognized him as the Councilman who handed her the scroll in her "dream". She turned her gaze towards Tasuki's apparently dead body, ignoring his words and said, "So, are you going to take away my place as Paladin? Might as well be dead, then."

"Check your pulse, Akire," the Councilman said. Akira did as she was told. "Why? Okay and, AAAHHH! I DON'T HAVE ANY!" Following is 3 solid minutes of screaming. "I'm dead! I'M DEAD!" Akire screamed, and then broke down in fits of hysterical laughter, sinking to the floor. "I can't believe it! H-ha-ha! And I don't know what to do!" Looking at her with pity, he helped her to her feet and led her through a black double-door.

What she saw inside almost drove her insane (though she might be already). Assembled there were the rest of the Council. A pale, blue, eerie light shone behind them, but they were lit by a bright, red light in front. No wonder, for there blazed before them a wide, red chasm with flames licking all sides. Banshee screams can be heard from below the chasm, mingled with hysterical cackles and deep roars chanting intangible words. Above the chasm were chains, and attached to those chains was none other than Ikegai. He was wriggling like a snake, with a look of profound fear in his eyes.

"What are they going to do to him?" Akire mumbled, horrified. Suddenly, the flames spiraled inwards, creating a vortex of some kind. Then, the air around them was sucked into the flames, and now Ikegai was slowly being lowered to the vacuum. Pretty soon, Akire lost her footing and she, too, was being sucked in! Too out of breath to speak, she clawed at the marble floor desperately, and was almost near the mouth of the chasm, when the Councilman spotted her and helped her out.

"Dreadfully sorry, child, I forgot that we Council members are the only ones unaffected by this," he said apologetically. Akire rolled her eyes and said, "What's going on anyway? What do you mean by 'this'?" He raised his hand to silence her, which quite annoyed her, as he said in a booming voice, "Stop this at once! I have found the Paladin."

At the sight of her, the Council members' eyes widened in surprise, and one of them immediately fumbled with a black, iron gavel and vigorously pounded it on the podium before them. "Cease, cease!" he cried. At once, an angry, booming roar ensued from the chasm, as it sucked the flames back in, and the serene blue light flooded the room. The chasm then closed itself, sending tremors throughout the room as it did so. Finally, there was silence, except for the terrified sobs of Ikegai, and Akire's heavy breathing.

"Now, Akire, I can answer your question," the Councilman said. "That chasm you just saw, let's just say Hades has its own express elevator." From the podium, an angry councilman bellowed, "What is the meaning of this, Councilman Mikhail? What is the Paladin doing at the courtroom? She is not designated for today!" Mikhail whispered from the corner of his mouth, "Ah, put a cork in it, Highness." Akire giggled, her image of a cold, stiff Councilman fast evaporating. She looked over her shoulder to check if Tasuki was still laying unconscious (or dead) where she left him, when her jaw dropped in surprise. Tasuki's gone!

A while ago, Tasuki's eyes slowly opened. "Whoa, w-where am I?" He stood up, and found that he was surprisingly invigorated. "Wow. I feel great!" he said, "I don't even think I'm injured any more!" He looked around the circular room, and found that it was surrounded by many doors, two of which are the largest. The first one was pitch black, as if it was burned from top to bottom while the last one was made of pure white marble, with faint light shining from the bottom. He looked around some more, and saw no-one, so he did a little poking around. "No harm lookin' through them weird doors, anyway," he murmured.

He saw shadows behind the black door, so he chose to go through the white marble door. Expecting intense light behind the door, he raised his hand to shield his eyes, but when he entered, all he saw was a narrow ray of light at the center. A man was sitting, bored, beside the light, and when he saw Tasuki, his face brightened up. "Finally! I thought I'm going to be alone here for eternity!"

Tasuki looked at the ray of light and asked, "What IS this place, anyway?" The man looked at him puzzled and said, "You don't know? Boy, do I need to fill you in." He pointed to the ceiling, where he saw a wide opening where the light was coming from. "Where the light is leading, my friend, there you'll find the answer to your troubles. You're tired? You are gonna get what you need up there. You'll never have to deal with your problems up there. It's the most amazing place ever, or at least that's what I heard."

Curious but still skeptical, Tasuki asked, "Well, if it's so cool up there, why don't YOU go?" The man held out his hand and passed it through the beam of light, which immediately disappeared. The light then slowly came back when the man removed his hand. "I'm not ready to go there yet," he said," I walked towards the door when these creepy men popped out of nowhere and told me I have to wait." Tasuki asked, "Boy that would be boring. How long HAVE you been waiting?"

The stranger shrugged and said, "Hey, since no-one stopped you from getting this far, maybe you're meant to go up there!" Tasuki stared again at the source of the light and said, "My whole life, or 'least for the most part, all I've come across is trouble. I think I AM tired of all that fightin' and runnin' away from the bad guys. Where I come from, I don't think I really could get a day-off. Maybe all that braggin' and showin' off I do was just somethin' I do to hide the fact that I just wanna stop punchin' my way outta a mess and sleep the whole day off at home, if I can really call Hotohori's place home."

He paused to think things through, and then finally said, "Yeah, the guys can handle themselves pretty damn well anyways. Miaka and Chichiri and Nuriko and the others can probably figure out a way to send her back to her world." He was about to step into the light when he stopped again, bit his lip and said, "Uh, hey, if you see a guy named Tamahome 'round here, tell him I'm sorry for all the stuff I did to him." He made another step towards the ray of light, but then hesitated again. The stranger laughed and said, "Make up your fickle mind, dude! Look, just tell me who I gotta say goodbye to in your behalf."

Tasuki grinned. "I like this guy," he thought, and then said to the man, "Okay, just hope you remember 'em all." He drew a deep breath and said, "Please tell Miaka, stay out of trouble and don't eat too much, Chichiri, it's been nice knowing you, buddy, Nuriko, it's been fun and start actin' like yourself, Mitsukake, you're a really nice guy and stay that way, Chirico, you're a really brilliant kid, hope you don't grown up too fast and Hotohori, thanks for lettin' me stay in your 'house', and take good care of, uh, his hair." The stranger repeated everything to make sure he memorized it all, and then he asked, "Is that all?" Tasuki shook his head. "Wait, wait, oh yeah. Kouji! My first best bud! Just tell 'im to take good care of the guys in Mt. Leikaku, and watch out for himself."

"Anybody else?"

"...uhh, wait, wait, I got this, I got this, there! I knew I was forgettin' someone: Akire. I...I haven't seen her 'round here. She's one of the last people I've seen lately."

The stranger grinned. "Is she your girlfriend?"

Tasuki grimaced. "Blech, no."

"Your sister, then?"

"Kinda. More like a very perky friend. We haven't gotten along the first time we met, but now we're cool. Just, just tell her to stay away from dating homicidal maniacs. Darn it, hope she's okay." The stranger nodded, then shook his hand. "See you on the other side," Tasuki said, grinning, then stepped towards the beam of light. "Heh, cool I can see somethin' up there!" he said, looking up while shielding his eyes from the bright light.

Just at that moment, Akire kicked open the doors ("Ow! Ow! Why didn't you tell me they were solid MARBLE?!") and yelled, "STAY WHERE YOU ARE! YOU CAN'T GO THERE!" Out of surprise, Tasuki instinctively jumped out of the light's path and said, "Akire! Don't you go scarin' me like that! And why can't I go?" Akire patted him on the shoulder and said, "First of all, you're dead-"

"AKK! I'M TOO YOUNG TO DIE!"

"Sigh. Second of all, you're NOT SUPPOSED TO DIE,"

"Oh. Right. Heh. Okay."

"And thirdly..." here, she pinched Tasuki on the ear so painfully it grew as red as a tomato and continued, "You stupid imbecile! You poke your nose where it doesn't belong! If it weren't for me, you would've done something you will regret for eternity and believe me, where you were headed awhile ago, you have all eternity to be sorry!"

"Okay, okay, sorry!"

"Good."

"Um, Akire? Akire?"

"What?"

"LET GO OF MY EAR! OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWW!"

"Whoops. Okay, there you go."

"Sheesh Akire, your temper! What, been to hell lately?"

"You can say almost. Now, the Council's summoned me. Or rather, us. Can we move now, or do I have to drag you by the ear?"


	13. Council Is In Session

Chapter 13: Council is in Session

Tasuki peered suspiciously at the black gate. "I dunno, Akire, I've got a weird vibe comin' from this place, like I'm headed to an execution or something." Akire shuddered, recalling what happened just a few minutes ago when she almost got sent to Hell (limbo, eternal damnation, etcetera, etcetera...). "Execution, you said? No, execution is just the beginning in this place. Where you're headed after is what you've got to worry about." The redheaded bandit let out an exasperated sigh. "Boy, cheerful lot today, are we?"

Akire turned her attention to Mikhail before they entered the council room and asked, "What was that white void that was eating away Ikegai's mind?" The Councilman replied, "You do know you were risking your life for a gamble when you two entered Ikegai's mind? There are serious repercussions, you, know, when you invade a mind. That's why it is very ill-advised to do so. It was lucky that Ikegai didn't die immediately or you two would've been dead with him." Akire smiled and said, "Aren't we dead now? Doesn't it make no difference?"

Mikhail opened the black gate, where a group of impatient Council members sat, fuming, on their comfy swivel chairs. "Smug little shmucks," Akire thought, but then stopped herself from saying it out loud for fear that the remark will cost her one push into the flaming chasm that is the express train to Hell. But they were forced to keep their thoughts to themselves anyway, for the loud banging of an iron gavel, followed by a "SIT!" from one of the Councilmen, gave them quite little room for much thought.

"Stand up, Paladin!" the middle Councilman bellowed, probably the main judge. Akire, much to her displeasure, immediately scrambled to her feet, wondering why she was ordered to sit down in the first place. "With all due respect, sir, I do have a name, and don't let's not get mad at someone when she doesn't even know what made your Honor so upset," Akire said, with only a hint of sarcasm in her voice. Nevertheless, the Council wasn't in such a good mood today. Councilman Mikhail sighed, rolled his eyes, and proceeded to an empty chair next to the judge.

The Judge (let's just call him judge, shall we?) was about to return a very nasty comment when they were interrupted by a loud wail from Ikegai, who's got an even more demented look right now after his near tumble into the pits of Hades. To make things worse, Tasuki took off his boot and threw it at the pathetic man, shouting, "Shut up, you crazy moron!" Akire hid her face in her hands and mumbled, "Tasuki, land sakes, just pipe down a minute, would you?"

That was probably the last straw for our dear judge. Mikhail grimaced, expecting to bear the full brunt of the coming blast, as he covered his ears. Sure enough, Judge whacked the pedestal with his iron gavel with full force. "Think you two are funny now, do you" he said, temples twitching as he pointed the shaking gavel in Akire's direction. The poor girl's still covering her ears so tightly that she didn't a word. Unfortunately, Judge misread these actions and shouted, "EMPRESS AKIRE! YOU WILL LISTEN TO ME, YOU IMPUDENT PALADIN!"

Councilman Mikhail already removed his fingers from his ears, when Judge roared his heart out, all the while banging the gavel on the podium. Akire slowly uncovered her ears and said, "So that's what you were saying! The gavel sounds were quite interfering with my hearing."

Judge finally calmed down, but he surely wasn't going to let all this slip by him. He's got a nasty surprise waiting for Akire, one she should've seen a mile away. "Well, Madame Akire, it seems like you are showing a bit of disrespect to your elders." He paused, letting the foreboding statement to sink in. "Therefore, since you so despise being in our presence, we will remove you from our sight, permanently. Effective, oh, say, immediately, you are stripped of your Paladin title. You will NOT venture beyond Amria, you will NOT wield your Paladin abilities and you will surrender you Ring now!" Then Judge sat down with a smug expression on his face.

Akire calmly took off her ring, but her eyes betrayed her anger, and before long she wasn't able to keep her composure. She shrieked as she threw the ring at the Council. "Am I just a rag doll who does all your dirty work for you? ANSWER ME! I have been in your service for 16 damned years, risking life and limb, and now that I screw up you just...THROW ME AWAY! "

The judge bared his teeth and pointed a threatening finger at her. "Cease your ramblings, you insolent woman! There is no overturning my decision! I am immediately sending you back to Amria. You have your duty as Empress, don't you foul this up, too. Or is removing you from being a Paladin not enough for your disappointments?" As he spoke, a dimensional gateway opened in front of her, only unlike the normal portals, this one sucks in the person who's about to enter.

"Well, then, your 'Majesty', get in!" the judge said. Akire, who was fighting against the pull of the portal, suddenly went limp and gave up. In fact, she willingly walked slowly towards the portal, sobbing quietly with her mouth drawn tight. "Your will be done, O Omnipotent Council. It's always your way or the highway, isn't it?" she whimpered.

Tasuki's gaze darted from Akire's dejected expression to the Council's cold stare. "Whoa, this ain't right!" he said to himself. So, grabbing his other boot (after giving Ikegai another whack behind the head with it), he quickly threw it at the portal before Akire can go in. The wormhole, sensing "someone" has already entered it, imploded and closed itself. "Hopefully, I can get that boot back, I've been to hell and back with that thing," he muttered.

"Scuse me, fellas, hope you don't mind me puttin' in a few words about all this," he said, sitting down in front of them (his foot got too cold). "We DO mind," the judge said, while some other councilmen nodded their heads in agreement. "Wait! Here him out," Councilman Mikhail said. Judge got really, really pissed at that point (he'd done nothing but send souls to hell all afternoon) and said, "What is the meaning of this, eh? Getting a bit one-sided are we?" Mikhail, without missing a beat replied, "Look who's talking, 'brother'. You accuse me of being one-sided when you wouldn't even hear Akire's side of things. Anyway, why do you not want to hear this young man out? Are you afraid?" Judge grew silent, as did the others. "P-proceed," he finally told Tasuki, barely unable to contain his anger, and shame.

Akire was stunned. She knew that Tasuki was a save-the-damsel type of guy (in a way...), but she never actually knew he can talk it out of a situation. Or try to. She always knew him to be a punch-me-burn-you type of guy. But then again, she'd only met him a few days ago. Not really sure what to do next, she kept silent.

Seeing all eyes turned towards him, Tasuki gulped nervously. Obviously, proving his point besides sticking his fist inside a guy's craw wasn't one of his strong points. And his nervousness showed that he hadn't actually thought through what he was about to say. Seeing as he can't win this through polite and reasonable debate, he settled for the only way he knew: irritable frankness. "Look, over-pompous jerks," he began, "that woman's been working her butt off for the past few years for you self-righteous pigs and you shoo her off just like that! What the hell is that all about?" Akire grimaced. "I'm going to hell for sure," she thought.

The fang-boy continued, "You sit there all day, and the only thing you probably have to worry about is getting butt cramps! Oh yeah, and I guess you guys also are afraid of snapping your wrists off from all that gavel-pounding!" Judge's eyes widened in anger as he said, "You disrespectful delinquent! Do you know what I can do to you for those insults you said?"

Unfazed, Tasuki sneered, "Oh, I got a pretty good idea. The real question here, mister, is if you guys are so damn powerful, why don't you do her job yourselves? Get off those comfy chairs and see what it's like to be constantly be threatened by death, or stay under the sun trying to track down the bad guys. Seeing as you're all so invulnerable and strong, why don't you spend a few days down there in the mortal world? See what it's like to bleed and break for once."

"But-!"

"Whassamatter? You guys chicken? Or are you just plain lazy? Too comfy lyin' on your butts for eternity?"

"LOOK HERE, YOUNG MAN! SHE HAS MADE GRIEVIOUS ERRORS IN JUDGEMENT! AND HER ACTIONS AND THE CONSEQUENCES PROVE IT!" The Judge roared, going very red and breathing heavily. Akire, watching everything as though dazed, suddenly came to her senses and quickly put in a word before Tasuki says anything else.

She put one hand on Tasuki's shoulder partly to thank him and partly to stop him. Her other hand's palm was facing the Council as a token on submission. "I...I admit that I do make mistakes. After all, everyone is...human. But I can learn to change, if you would just please give me another chance. If you look at my situation, I am young, and I have my country's affairs to manage." (Tasuki: "YOUR country?")

Councilman Mikhail said, "I agree with you, but only partly. Your mistakes right now have already fairly large repercussions. How much more if you make more of them in the future?" Akire was silent, searching for answers. But she then glanced at Tasuki, and found what she was looking for. "Then perhaps, I should get some help." Mikhail leaned forward and said, "Help, Akire?" She nodded, patting Tasuki's shoulder. "Without him I couldn't have done anything. Shouldn't we be allowed to have more allies? I met Tasuki only by chance. If Ikegai didn't hide in their world, I wouldn't have gotten a chance to meet him." Tasuki said sarcastically, "Aww, shucks, Akire, you're makin' me go red!" Akire muttered, "You better cut that out, mister!"

Judge then said, "Then it proves your incompetence in the field! The previous Paladins didn't need that many permanent allies! What will you do, form an army?" Akire lost a bit of her composure and retorted, "And how OLD were the Paladins then, hmm? As I can recall, you picked the previous Paladins who already had experience in other situations. I was picked because circumstances didn't leave you much option. That is not my fault. And neither is it yours, may I add. I promise to do better this time around, and if I fail you can take this away from me."

There was a brief silence, then murmurs erupted from the Councilmen. Finally, after much persuasion, Judge declared, "Ahh, very well, very well, you are given another chance." Akire cheered, and raised her hand. "Gimme 5, dude!" she said gleefully at Tasuki, who of course doesn't know what it means, since unfortunately high-5s weren't invented yet. So she quickly put down her hand and said "Heh, just a week or so ago I was asking myself why I even accepted this job in the first place!"

Councilman Mikhail stooped down to pick up something and tossed it to Akire. "I believe you will be needing this," he said. Akire niftily caught the object, and saw that it was her ring. She kissed it and said, "Oh, baby, I promise I won't toss you away like that ever again!" She then patted Tasuki saying, "Time to go back, the others are probably getting worried."

"Hold on! Not just yet," Judge said. "Due to the trauma your bodies have endured in the mortal world, you'll have to be put to sleep first. Then, his memory of the past few hours have got to be...wiped clean." Akire's jaw dropped. Tasuki, of course, wasn't taking this very well. "That's not fair!" he whined, "Why do you have to do that?" Akire said, "If you remove his memory, he'll be bickering and bickering against me again! And there won't be an Ikegai-kidnaps-us-makes-us-friends situation anymore! He'll hate me forever!" Mikhail shook his head and said, "My hands are tied on this one, Akire. His body, above all, endured the most severe damages. In order for us to undo most of it, there will be consequences in his brain functions." Akire tried arguing, saying, "But, but, his brain's ALWAYS been like that!"

"I HEARD THAT!"

"And if you take away anymore of his memories, he'll become even more retarded!"

"Don't push it, lady!"

Mikhail gestured them to be silent and explained, "There's also another reason. No other mortal except those that have become Paladins are allowed to see this place and then sent back to their earthly forms. You, Akire, are excused because of the obvious reason that you are the Paladin. But mere mortals like him are only supposed to be here for the final judgment when they're, you know, dead."

He turned to Tasuki and said, "Lie down and rest. You'll wake up in the mortal world quite a bit rejuvenated." Tasuki bared his teeth. "I won't let you mess around with my head. And I won't lie down!" Mikhail said, "Sure you will. You're feeling very tired, after all the blood you lost and the wounds you got from the fights, you just want to lie down and rest." Tasuki felt himself growing sleepier and sure enough, he was lying down on the marble floor. The minute his eyes were fully closed, he disappeared.

"If only there was another way," Akire said, "but, as you said, there's nothing that can be done." She saw all eyes turned to her and she sighed. "I suppose I should be going now. Let's get this over with. And thank you again for giving me another chance." She then glanced around the room and spotted Ikegai. For a second their eyes met, and it sent a shiver down her spine. She immediately severed her gaze from his, and asked, "What about him?" Judge said before Mikhail could reply, "He is our business. No need to know what his fate will be. Worry about him no more." Before she could say another word, her eyelids began to droop, and finally closed.

"_IKEGAI'S BODY IS GONE!"_

"_I'M NOT GETTING TASUKI'S PULSE! NOTHING'S WORKING!"_

"_Please, everyone! Please! Do everything you can!"_

"_Miaka, I'm sorry there's just--wait! H-he's breathing! He's alive! What about Akire?"_

"_She's not giving us anything! Oh, dammit! It's like she's reluctant to wake up!" _

"W-What?"

"_Oh, friggin' heck, she's awake! How the heck did these two do it? Dead one minute, yawning the next!"_

The light of the sun blinded Akire momentarily, as her eyes flickered open. She covered her face with both hands and mumbled, "How's Tasuki?" She held her breath. "Maybe, maybe they changed their minds, maybe he's still got his memories," she thought as she waited for an answer.

"I'm fine! Now shut up!" Tasuki's spiteful reply cut a knife through her heart, and she groaned under her breath. They undid his memory after all. Nuriko put a finger to his lips and said, "Shh! You've just woken up after we almost lost you both, and the first thing that came out of your potty-mouth is THAT! She was asking you nicely, for heaven's sakes!"

Akire raised her hand to stop them and said, "Don't mind it, Nuriko. Don't mind it. So, what did we miss?"


	14. Epilogue

Chapter 14: Epilogue

A/n: I've adhered to a request and will now refer to Nuriko as "he" (hehe, this's the last chappie anyway...)

"You're body's considerably weakened, Akire, though I don't see any wounds on the surface, but it looks like you're recovering," Mitsukake said, when they were back in Hotohori's casa. Akire nodded, being too depressed to reply. "And how are Tasuki's injuries?" she whispered. Mitsukake replied, "His wounds aren't healed yet, but he's going to be fine." Akire gave another nod, and fell silent. "You should rest, you know," the seishi said after awhile, "it'll give you time to think about how to patch things up with Tasuki. If, of course, that is what you want." She arose from her chair and walked silently to her room. "Thanks, Mits," she said, trying to sound cheerful, "Though I won't be around to spend more time with you guys, anyway. I'm...sailing back to my country first thing tomorrow."

She stretched out and yawned on her bed, and heard a barely audible rustle beside her. "You haven't answered my earlier question yet, Chichiri," she smiled, turning towards the direction of the sound. "Nice to know your senses are sharp," he replied, popping into view. "So, what question was that, Akire?"

Akire looked out her window and said, "You haven't told me yet what happened when we...disappeared." Chichiri sat down, rubbed his chin and finally said, "Hmm, as I could recall, there was this flash of light, and you two disappeared. First you have to tell me what happened there before I continue." Akire, not in the mood to explain her powers, said simply, "It was Ikegai's, um, chi. I, or we, anticipated that move and dived in, causing us to merge with his mind. Now go on."

He nodded and continued, "So, we were quite shocked to discover that you two were gone, and Ikegai was standing there, staring at nothing. He moved like he was a puppet and someone was randomly moving his strings. We honestly didn't know what to do with him, so we waited. And waited some more. Then, Tasuki appeared, lying down and his breathing's stopped. It was in the nick of time that he completely materialized, or another second and all that'll appear is a limp corpse."

Chichiri narrated to Akire about the falling cavern incident, and how he, Tasuki and Ikegai were left in the cavern. "So, in a way, I was causing that," Akire said. "Ah, don't sweat it," Chichiri replied, and continued, "so, anyway, the only way we can get Ikegai out was if I can send Tasuki back in there to help you seal Ikegai's mind. The minute I completed the process, I was knocked out on the head by this rock because I was a bit weak from the transfer. There, I think, the cavern was almost completely on us. I woke up and everything was dark, and tons of rubble was pressing down on me. I erected a barrier to force away the rocks and saw Ikegai's bleeding body on one side, and Tasuki's slowly materializing form in the other. Since Ikegai's almost dead weight now, it was easier for me to get us all out of that cave."

Akire nodded. The force that was all killing them seconds before they were "eaten" by the white void was the cavern roof falling upon Ikegai's body. But since Chichiri woke up and got them out, he was able to stop them from dying in there. "It's a bit weird, though, that Ikegai's body disappeared," Chichiri said after awhile. "Do you have any explanations, Akire?" Akire shook her head. "What DID the Council do to that pathetic excuse?" she thought.

Meanwhile, back in the Council chambers, Ikegai whimpered pathetically (think Gollum, for all you LOTR fans). "Akire...Akire...don't leave me here!" he kept on repeating. Mikhail looked at him with pity and asked, "Should we transport him to the Amrian prison? It seems like he's lost his mind. I actually pity him." Judge grasped the gavel and shook his head. "No, no, Mikhail, he won't go to prison. And, no, he won't go into an asylum, either." He pounded the gavel two times, and the chains that held Ikegai disappeared. Another two hits of the gavel and a wormhole appeared in front of the villain, transporting him away.

"Where did you send him?" Mikhail asked suspiciously. "You didn't send him into hell, most likely." Judge shook his head, "Not hell, most certainly not. I released him, for Akire to hunt down again, if Ikegai 'resurfaces'." Mikhail darted up from his seat and bellowed, "Preposterous! You would risk the lives of mortals by sending that hellish creature BACK? You finally have gone mad!" Another Councilman spoke. "Silence, Mikhail. Unless you would like to be removed from this Council and be stripped of your authority, you would best keep silent about this recent event. The Paladin wants to prove herself to us? She must capture him again, and she better do it right the second time." Mikhail, aghast, sat down again. He dared not risk being booted from the Council, for only as Councilman can he try and help Akire, the daughter he never had.

Okay, enough about them. Akire strolled depressingly around the palace, looking for someone to talk to. "If I talk to Tasuki, he'll push me away. If I don't, he'll stay angry with me. I don't want to leave things like this." She finally came across Nuriko, who had a puzzled look on his face. "Do you know that Tasuki doesn't remember anything about the fight in the cavern?" he asked her. Akire sighed. "Ye—no, I don't. It's probably because a rock fell on his head back there." Nuriko replied, "Impossible! No rock can hurt him! Nothing is possibly thicker than his head!" Akire mustered a few giggles, before going silent again.

Nuriko said after awhile, "Look, I know your still upset about Tasuki being forever mad at you and all, but you have to forgive the guy. He's been through a rough childhood, or so he says." Akire said, "Nuriko, I've forgiven him a long while ago. The thing I worry about is if he can do the same to me." He patted Akire's shoulder, and then said, "Ah! Dinner! Now there's something to liven up your spirit! There's nothing like a good bowl of food!" Akire smiled. "At least I've known a friend like you. I'd like to thank you now for all the kindness you gave me," she said, hugging Nuriko. He smiled and said, "Well, if you want your dinner, you better run or Miaka will eat it all!"

They, fortunately, found their bowls untouched when they reached the dinner table. "Good evening, guys," Akire greeted. Then, the once noisy table went silent. After a few seconds, the silence was broken by Tasuki's chair scraping against the floor, as he arose. "I'm done with my dinner," he said simply, and left. "You'll have to forgive him," Chichiri said, "You know how he is." Akire nodded, and muttered, "Yes. I guess so."

Dinner that night was uncannily quiet, and ended quite quickly. While the rest said their "goodnights" and went to their rooms, Akire was the only one left on the table, even as the servants were cleaning up. Suddenly, she stood up and said, "Um, can you leave that bowl over there? Someone, someone's bound to come back and finish."

The minute she was left alone, she packed the bowl full of food and ran outside looking for Tasuki. "I just hope he didn't run out into the mountains," she said, half sarcastically. Thankfully, she found him brooding on top of the tree where they first fought each other. "Ah, the irony," she muttered, as she climbed her way up.

"Oh. You're here," was the curt greeting when Tasuki saw her. "You gonna speak to me? Haven't you forgotten that I don't like you?" Akire bit her lip and swallowed her pride. "M-Miaka told me to give this to you," she said, handing over the bowl of food. Tasuki grabbed it, and then stared at her. After a moment of awkward silence, Akire sighed and said, "Alright, alright, I'm leaving."

Tasuki took one look at the bowl and was about to throw it away, when he heard a voice say, "You idiot. She ain't that bad!" He looked around to find out who said it, and then realized that it was HIS voice. "Now where did that come from?" he wondered. Shaking his head, he looked at the rice bowl and saw a note stuck at the bottom. "This is so cheesy," he muttered, as he opened the note.

"'Hey, fang-boy,'" he read, "'seeing as you didn't finish your dinner, I took the liberty of bringing you more food. It's not very good to take your hunger for granted, you know, or you'll faint. Look, if I ever made you mad or offended you in any way, I am very, very sorry. I don't like leaving things like this, since tomorrow maybe the last chance I'll ever see you guys again. So...truce? By the way, I think I may have packed too much food in there, maybe you can finish if you split it with someone.'" Tasuki looked at the bottom of the tree and saw Akire standing there, grinning, and holding up a pair of chopsticks. "Why, you sneaky little vixen!"

Later...

"Oy, oy, oy Akire! You're takin' all the tasty bits!"

"Sez you."

"Oh yeah? The peas are gone! Wait, I hate peas!"

"You see dum-dum?"

"HEY! STICK TO YOUR SIDE OF THE BOWL, WOMAN!"

"Fine, fine."

The next morning...

"Oh, Akire, it's too bad you're leaving so soon!" Nuriko remarked as he hugged Akire. "I have a lot to attend to back home, unfortunately, so I can't linger, but thanks for all the hospitality!" Akire said, patting Nuriko's shoulder and then continued packing. "Oh, wait, I'm going to call the others!" he said, and ran off.

Akire checked her things one by one to see if everything's in order. Sure enough, she found something amiss. "I should've known," she murmured, grinning. She heard someone creeping up beside her, as she said, "Give me my sword back, Tasuki." The man beside her (obviously Tasuki), unbuckled her sword from his belt and handed it back to her. "Took you long enough, Akire," he said.

She grabbed it, seemingly calm, and then stepped out of her room. Tasuki grinned, going after her. Akire, losing her composure, turned back and embraced him. "Oh, you insufferable, puppy-faced blowhard!" she said, crying, "I was planning on going out of here without saying good-bye, but you had to come in my room and, and, darn it I'm crying!" Tasuki's jaw dropped when she hugged him, and was trying to pull away but finally gave up. "Ahhh, I'll miss you too," he finally said.

Akire wiped her tears and finally let him go. She was about to hold out her hand for a formal handshake, but then decided to punch his shoulder lightly. "You do know only macho guys do that?" Tasuki remarked. "You do know friends do that?" she retorted. He nodded, not really feeling like arguing with her, as he patted her shoulder and grasped her hand. "You take care now. And no dates with strangers, y'hear?" he said, trying to look away. Akire smiled and nodded, trying to repress more tears. "And you behave yourself now, li'l bro," she said.

"Yeah, yeah okay, just go already will you?" Tasuki said, staring at the ceiling. Akire grinned. She knew he didn't mean that, anyway. "Alright then, goodbye, Tasuki." With that, she turned and walked away.

She rode a horse to the docks, and sure enough her ship is there, waiting to "sail" her back to Amria. But she isn't boarding it just yet. The sound of a galloping horse drawing near signaled Tasuki's approach. He hurriedly got off, panting.

"You sly vixen!" he said, "gimme back the tessen!" Akire had already opened her bag and pulled out the fan. "Here you go," she said, "what took you so long? I wasn't planning on hauling this iron heap all the way back to my place." He grabbed it from her, then grinned and clapped his hands sarcastically. "But seriously, no-one's ever done that before, y'know, steal my tessen right under my nose," he said, "but believe me, no-one ever will again. So, don't try pullin' that trick again." Akire smiled and said, "Just returning the favor."

They both looked at the white, unfurled sails of the oaken ship. "When're you gonna stop by again? Maybe you know we can hang 'round the pub," he remarked. Akire raised an eyebrow and said, "And what? Get myself drunk again? No way, Jose, not in your life." Tasuki smirked and replied, "Hey, who said you'll do all the drinkin'? Who's gonna pay for my drinks when you're gone, seeing as you're so rich and all."

"I am not rich, Tasuki, and there's no way I will treat you to anything!" she said, sticking out her tongue and boarding the ship, which began inching forward, slowly picking up speed. Tasuki hollered, "Seriously, when will we see you again?" Akire gamely waved goodbye at him as she yelled back, "Probably never, Tasuki, probably never."


End file.
